Who is Rebecca Kutler? President of MSNBC called impromptu meeting after Joy Reid's firing was reportedly leaked to the press before staff knew

After news about MSNBC canceling Joy Reid's evening news show was leaked to the press, the outlet's new president, Rebecca Kutler, called a meeting with Reid's staff on February 23, 2025. Two individuals familiar with the situation spoke to The New York Times and revealed that The ReidOut, which used to be aired at 7 pm local time, was getting scrapped as a part of the lineup shuffling.

In The New York Times reports dated February 23, it is further mentioned that the two individuals claimed that MSNBC decided to replace Reid's show with another one, which would have Symone Sanders-Townsend, Alicia Menendez, and Michael Steele as anchors.

The apparent cancellation of Joy Reid's show happened about a month after ex-MSNBC president Rashida Jones stepped down from the position.

After Rashida's exit, Rebecca Kutler became the new president of MSNBC on February 12, 2025, as per Variety. Kutler joined the media house as a senior vice president in 2022. According to her LinkedIn profile, she was overseeing non-linear content for the news channel.

Prior to joining MSNBC, Kulter was a part of CNN, where she worked for more than a decade. She started as a producer in the channel back in 2006 and later held positions like executive producer. From 2021 to 2022, she served as the senior vice president and head of programming for CNN.

Rebecca Kutler received her Bachelor of Arts degree in political communication from The George Washington University. She then attended Columbia University- Graduate School of Journalism to get a master of science degree in journalism. Back in 2012, she was awarded the Emmy Award for Outstanding Live Coverage for her work on CNN's "Election Night in America" coverage.

As reported by Variety on February 12, Mark Lazarus, the NBCU executive, spoke about Kutler and said:

"[Kutler] has the big-picture strategic view and the right leadership skills to ensure MSNBC delivers on its brand promise and is positioned for growth during a time of industry change."

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Joy Reid's staff were reportedly frustrated after learning about her show's cancelation from media coverage

Joy Reid's staff learned about the cancellation of her show from the media (Image via Getty)

As aforementioned, a meeting took place on Sunday, February 23, 2025, between Rebecca Kutler and Joy Reid's staff, who were reportedly frustrated with the news. According to news journalist Oliver Darcy, the staff were unhappy that they got to know about it from other news reports and not from the company heads.

As per reports by Status News, the impromptu meeting became "tense and emotional" when the staff got to know that Joy Reid's show was getting shut down. Some employees reportedly asked for further explanation behind the cancelation and how it could affect the future of MSNBC.

According to Kutler, the decision was made based on "data analysis and programming strategy." She further clarified that it had nothing to do with external factors like Donald Trump's influence. For the unversed, Reid has been known for her pro-left stance.

Kutler also confirmed that the show staff had been terminated. They, however, would be paid till April 2025 to receive severance.

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Joy Reid is yet to make any comment about the latest decision of her show's cancelation by MSNBC.