On MSNBC’s “Morning Joe,” hosts Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski found themselves in an awkward position as they joked about the network’s potential sale, following a Wall Street Journal report indicating that Comcast is planning to spin off its NBCUniversal cable channels, which include MSNBC.
According to WSJ’s Amol Sharma, Comcast is set to announce on Wednesday its intention to separate from its cable networks, a move that acknowledges the declining value of what was once a crown jewel of the company. This separation will affect several channels, including MSNBC, CNBC, USA, Oxygen, E!, Syfy, and the Golf Channel, which collectively generated around $7 billion in revenue over the past year.
As the news broke, Mika delivered the report with a straight face, prompting Joe to lighten the mood with a joke about Mika’s penthouse. “I’ll just say this quickly,” Scarborough said, referencing the Drudge Report’s sensational headline, “News melts down!” He added, “I could be completely wrong: we could all be fired a year from now. You never know what’s going to happen.”
Mika chimed in with a forced laugh, “Or tomorrow,” clearly not thrilled about the uncertainty surrounding their show.
In a surprising twist, President-elect Donald Trump shared insights about his recent 90-minute meeting with the co-hosts after his victory over Vice President Kamala Harris. The discussion aimed to mend a relationship that had been strained for nearly seven years.
“On Friday, we had the chance to meet with Trump and share our concerns about some of his appointments,” Mika revealed. “It was the first time we’ve seen him in seven years.”
Scarborough noted that they covered a range of topics, including abortion and political retribution, hinting at the tension with colleagues like Rachel Maddow, who has expressed fears about Trump’s potential actions against journalists.
Despite their differences, Mika emphasized the importance of reopening lines of communication. “We hadn’t spoken to Trump since March 2016, except for a personal call Joe made after an assassination attempt on him,” she said. “In this meeting, he was cheerful and seemed genuinely interested in finding common ground on divisive issues. And for those questioning why we’d meet with him during such contentious times, I’d ask: why wouldn’t we?”
Reflecting on the deep divisions in Washington, she added, “Joe and I realize it’s time to do something different, starting with not just talking about Trump, but talking with him.”
Trump responded to the meeting during an interview with Fox News, stressing the necessity of a “free, fair, and open media” to “Make America Great Again.” He expressed gratitude for the opportunity to engage in open communication with Scarborough and Brzezinski, calling their meeting “extremely cordial.”
“We discussed many things, and I appreciated their desire for open dialogue,” Trump said, noting that they congratulated him on running “a great and flawless campaign, one for the history books.”