Morning Joe host Joe Scarborough roasted MSNBC’s new name, just days after applauding it.
Scarborough, whose morning show airs on the network now known as MS NOW, poked fun at the new name Tuesday morning, comparing it to Jeb Bush’s doomed presidential 2016 campaign branding.
“Look at the excitement, it’s like Jeb! MS NOW!” he declared as he pointed to his wife and co-host Mika Brzezinski’s studio mug, where she jokingly scribbled out “NBC” and wrote “Now!”
Scarborough had made similar tweaks to his mug, enthusiastically showing it off to the camera. “And for all of our guests this morning, we’re going to be giving you the new branded Morning Joe MS Now cup,” he joked.
“This is high-class rebranding, they said ‘Joe, pull out all the stops,’” he quipped, raising his cup.
After Mika said she was “excited” by the rebrand, Scarborough fell in line and added: “It’s actually a good name.”
Just last week, Scarborough had crowed about the brilliance of the rebrand. “This shows we’re independent,” he claimed at the top of the show, “We’re moving in a direction beyond corporate media.”
CNBC’s Andrew Ross Sorkin agreed, gushing, “I’ve always thought about this network, and CNBC, and USA, and actually all of those assets, as insurgent networks. This is an insurgent network. And I love the idea, to be honest with you!”
Fellow MSNBC host Rachel Maddow said she was confused by how to pronounce the new name, which was announced amid the network’s separation from NBCUniversal.
“I will admit to having no idea how to pronounce ‘MS NOW’ (and I’m still not all that sure about pronouncing ‘Versant,’ either),” Maddow told Variety of the change and MSNBC’s new parent company Versant.
She does think the separation itself is “good for us.” She explained, “What NBC doing in its legacy timeslots… is just a world away from the 24/7 totally independent news operation that we’re able to stand up now, thanks to the spin-off.”
President Trump was less diplomatic in his response. “MSNBC is doing so poorly in the ratings that they are looking to change their name in order to get away from the stench of their fake news product,” Trump wrote in a late-night tirade on Truth Social last week.
“So much fun to watch their weak and ineffective owner, ‘Concast,’ headed by dopey Brian Roberts, hopelessly and aimlessly flailing in the wind in an attempt to disassociate itself from the garbage that they created!”
MSNBC did not immediately respond to request for comment.
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