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MSNBC Host Abruptly Leaves Network; Will Be Heading To CNN

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OPINION: This article may contain commentary which reflects the author's opinion.


MSNBC host Kasie Hunt took many by surprise when she suddenly announced that she was quitting the network.

The news caught fans by surprise, with some reacting with “disbelief” at the sudden announcement.

“I’ve got a little bit of bittersweet news from me this morning. This is going to be my final broadcast with all of you on ‘Way Too Early,’” she said.

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“I’ve really enjoyed spending most of the last year with all of you,” she continued.

“I’ll have more on my next adventure coming up in the next few weeks, but for now I want to say thank you to everyone at NBC News, at MSNBC … and particularly I also want to say thank you to the amazing teams that make this show happen every morning,” she added.

Hunt is now headed to CNN, where she will host her own show.

The Albuquerque Journal reported:

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She has joined CNN as an anchor and chief national affairs analyst. According to the network, she will also host a daily politics show on CNN+ as well as appear on CNN. And yes, CNN+ is a subscription-based streaming service; it’s getting so a plus-sign in a programmer’s name means “add to your viewing expenses.” CNN+ is due in early 2022.

Hunt reportedly quit after being offered between $1 to $1.5 million by CNN to host a new show on their network, and NBC News wouldn’t counter.

Variety reported that Hunt is headed to CNN:

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CNN has snatched Kasie Hunt, the Capitol Hill correspondent long viewed as a rising star at NBC News, as part of an aggressive bid to push the WarnerMedia cable-news outlet into the new frontier of streaming video.

Hunt surprised viewers Friday on her early-morning MSNBC program, “Way Too Early,” by revealing that she was doing her last broadcast of the show. “This is going to be my final broadcast with all of you,” she said, vowing to offer details of “my new adventure in the next few weeks.”

What she did not disclose, according to two people familiar with the matter, is that she will join CNN to focus largely on content that is produced for streaming viewers as part of a big bet being made by Jeff Zucker, president of CNN.

Variety added in its report that CNN is trying to develop streaming content platforms for top hosts for NBC’s Peacock streaming channel.

CNN is trying to hire dozens of people to help fuel its move into the streaming arena, and one person familiar with the matter said Hunt was offered an annual salary of between $1 million and $1.5 million that NBC News felt it simply could not match. This person suggested that Hunt could play a pivotal role in CNN’s streaming efforts, appearing online at moments of great national importance, such as during presidential elections.

CNN is experiencing a massive loss in viewership, so it shouldn’t surprise many that they are trying to make moves that many see as key to their survival.

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