Harris advisor joins MSNBC
Longtime Democratic strategist Symone Sanders is joining MSNBC as a weekend host for the progressive-leaning cable news channel.
Sanders, 32, most recently served as chief spokesperson and senior advisor for Vice President Kamala Harris. She left that post last month.
Beginning this spring, the Nebraska native will be a Washington, D.C.-based weekend host on the NBC Universal-owned outlet. She will have a program on MSNBC’s streaming channel the Choice, which is available on Peacock.
Sanders, who gained national recognition as chief spokesperson for Sen. Bernie Sanders’ 2016 presidential campaign, is the latest former politico to cycle into a cable news career.
While Fox News has become a landing spot for former officials in the Trump and Bush administrations, Democrats and progressives typically land at MSNBC and CNN. Most of them are in analyst or commentator roles but some, such as former Trump press secretary Kayleigh McEnany, have landed hosting jobs. One of McEnany’s predecessors, Sean Spicer, is a host on the conservative channel Newsmax.
Sanders joins MSNBC as it looks to rebuild its evening lineup. Top-rated host Rachel Maddow is expected to step back from a daily program sometime this year, although she remains committed to the network for several years. Longtime anchor Brian Williams exited his program “The 11th Hour” last month.
Sanders is regarded as a forceful personality — she wrote a book called “No, You Shut Up: Speaking Truth to Power and Reclaiming America” — who can command viewers’ attention as a host.
While she has been a Washington insider in recent years, she does have a different perspective garnered from her experiences living in the Midwest. Although she started on Bernie Sanders’ campaign, she has been a supporter of President Biden, serving as an advisor during his 2020 race.
She is the latest hire as news cable networks scramble to assemble lineups for the streaming news services.
CNN named former NPR host Audie Cornish as an anchor and correspondent for CNN+. The WarnerMedia unit also hired Chris Wallace as a host, poaching him from his longtime on-air home at Fox News.
Separately, Nexstar Media Group’s NewsNation channel has tapped veteran conservative Washington Post columnist George Will as a senior contributor. The company said Will will appear on NewsNation’s programs and play a key role in its coverage of 2022 midterm elections.