Joy Reid Blames Race and Trump ‘Anxiety’ for Her MSNBC Exit Amid Network Struggles

Former MSNBC host Joy Reid has broken her silence about her abrupt departure from the liberal-leaning cable network, suggesting her firing had more to do with her identity and political stance than ratings.

In a candid interview with former Today Show anchor Katie Couric on Couric’s new podcast, Reid spoke out for the first time about the behind-the-scenes tensions she believes led to the cancellation of her show, The ReidOut, earlier this year.

“It Wasn’t Ratings,” Reid Insists

While some reports have pointed to declining viewership as the reason for her ousting, Reid pushed back against those claims. According to her, The ReidOut actually performed better than many other MSNBC shows in the post-election ratings slump.

“Our show was down less than any other primetime show—other than Rachel Maddow,” Reid told Couric. “So we were just told that we were holding on pretty well.”

Reid maintained that MSNBC executives gave her a vague and scripted explanation for her firing. “It was perfunctory,” she said, adding that she still doesn’t know the real reason her show was axed.

“A Black Woman Doing the Thing”

Pressed by Couric on why she believes she was targeted, Reid suggested that her race and gender played a significant role.

“I think that there is a difference for Trump in hearing the kinds of criticisms, specifically out of a Black woman,” Reid explained. “It bothers him in a way it doesn’t bother him like anything else.”

She went further, noting that while hosts like Rachel Maddow and Nicolle Wallace are also outspoken critics of Trump, she was the only Black woman in that primetime lineup. “The only way I’m different from them is that I’m a Black woman doing the thing.”

Reid added that throughout her time on air, she consistently tried to address America’s racial history, a subject she felt uniquely positioned to speak on as a Black woman and the daughter of immigrants from what she said “Donald Trump would consider s***hole countries.”

Network “Anxiety” Over Trump?

Reid also believes the broader media landscape is shifting under pressure from Donald Trump and his supporters, particularly as the 2024 election loomed.

“There’s a lot of anxiety, not just at MSNBC, but across the media,” she said. “We’re seeing it at CBS, at ABC… There’s a push for people to ‘do less Trump, do more entertainment, don’t be too hard on him.’”

She even claimed that The View co-hosts were reportedly told to tone down their anti-Trump rhetoric, suggesting that media organizations fear retaliation or legal consequences. “I think Trump has the media spooked,” Reid said.

Social Media Tensions Behind the Scenes

Another issue Reid acknowledged was friction over her activity on social media. She revealed that MSNBC’s standards department often contacted her about her tweets, urging her to stay off the platform.

“They just don’t like that it pulls their talent out of control,” she explained. “Because now you’re not running what you’re tweeting through Standards and Practices… You’re giving your personality directly to the audience, and they don’t like that.”

Still, Reid claimed she was trying to be more careful online in the lead-up to her dismissal.

Replaced and Ratings Plummet

Since Reid’s departure, her 7 p.m. slot has been filled by The WeekNight, an ensemble show hosted by Symone Sanders-Townsend (former spokeswoman for Vice President Kamala Harris), Alicia Menendez (daughter of embattled Sen. Bob Menendez), and Michael Steele (former RNC Chair).

But the show has failed to catch fire.

According to recent ratings, The WeekNight averages just 770,000 viewers, significantly lower than the 1.2 million that watched MSNBC in that slot a year ago. On May 22, the show had only 56,000 viewers in the key 25–54 demographic.

It’s not just Reid’s old time slot that’s suffering. Jen Psaki, who took over The Rachel Maddow Show from Tuesday to Friday, has also seen a steep decline—down 46 percent from Maddow’s numbers during the Trump administration’s first 100 days.

Even Maddow herself, once a ratings juggernaut, is seeing a dip. Her Monday-only program now averages 1.8 million viewers, a 24 percent drop from last year.

MSNBC Faces an Identity Crisis

Reid’s exit and the faltering ratings of the new lineup highlight broader struggles at MSNBC. Under new leadership from network president Rebecca Kutler, who reportedly made the final call on Reid’s show, the network is trying to rebrand—but the results so far have been mixed at best.

Some reports suggest MSNBC executives had been eyeing Reid’s removal as early as late 2023, months before the cancellation became official.

As the network continues to search for a winning formula, it’s clear that Reid’s departure marked not just the end of a show—but the beginning of a reckoning over who gets to lead the national political conversation, and why.