Outspoken Hamas apologist and MSNBC host Mehdi Hasan has been missing from television since early in the war between Israel and the terror organization (Hamas, not MSNBC), but according to reports the network has canceled his weekend show.
Semafor broke the story on Thursday morning.
MSNBC is canceling outspoken opinion host Mehdi Hasan’s weekend program and show on the streaming service Peacock.
Two people familiar with the move, which MSNBC privately announced to staff Thursday morning, told Semafor that Hasan will become an on-camera analyst and fill-in host. The network plans to expand host Ayman Mohyeldin’s weekend program to two hours to replace Hasan’s show.
And according to Washington Post reporter Jeremy Barr, the cancelation comes as MSNBC plans to launch a new “ensemble show,” featuring (among others) former RNC chair Michael Steele.
As part of a weekend shift, MSNBC is launching a new “ensemble show” featuring Symone Sanders, Alicia Menendez, and Michael Steele.
— Jeremy Barr (@jeremymbarr) November 30, 2023
Mehdi Hasan will also be losing his 8 p.m. Sunday night show (which will be absorbed by Ayman Mohyeldin), but he’s staying at MSNBC as an analyst.
The Hollywood Reporter has more on the new show, which will be called “The Weekend.”
MSNBC is overhauling its weekend lineup ahead of the 2024 election season.
The biggest change is a new morning panel show, called The Weekend, which will be hosted by Symone Sanders-Townsend, Alicia Menendez and Michael Steele. The program will run from 8-10 a.m. and originate from Washington D.C., with Kyle Griffin as executive producer.
Sanders-Townsend and Menendez currently host weekend afternoon hours on MSNBC, but will shift to focus on the morning show.
Hasan’s absence from the network has been noteworthy. As we’ve reported, the network benched him shortly after major public backlash to his comments about Israel in the wake of the brutal Hamas attack on Israeli citizens in October. According to previous reporting from Semafor, “Middle East divisions have also spilled into the company’s internal politics,” and led to a lot of aggrieved staff members. But, ultimately, Hasan was benched while the network shifted its plans.
The host is losing not only his weekend show, but his Thursday night show on the streaming network Peacock.
