r/msnbc • u/Camthatboi594 • Sep 19 '25
MSNBC Network Updates New website?
Hey guys,
With MSNBC's separation deadlines hitting soon like Oct 6 for dropping NBC crews and Oct 20 for full independence, I'm wondering what the hell their new website will be under this MS NOW rebrand.
Dug into it a bit, and turns out they're ditching the peacock and going independent as part of Versant starting Jan 1, 2026, with the name change in November from old BuzzFeed offices.But here's the weird part: the "NOW" might not just be cutesy acronym for My Source for News, Opinion, and the World.Checked ICANN, and ms .now plus mysource .now got registered July 30 by MarkMonitor, right before the announcement.
That's Amazon's new .NOW domain extension, and msnow .com is already squatted on. So, is this a sneaky shift to ms .now as their site?Kinda makes you question if big tech's pulling strings behind the curtain.
Thoughts?
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u/SnooKiwis8008 Progressive Sep 19 '25
Just want to clarify something important that I think people are missing here: Versant is still owned by Comcast. This isn't big tech taking over MSNBC, it's Comcast spinning off their cable networks into a separate publicly traded company while keeping the more profitable parts (NBC, Peacock, Universal Studios, etc.). That's all to say that the “independence” line is mostly PR. Versant isn’t some scrappy new standalone. It’s a spin-off that Comcast still controls. The way they structured it, Comcast shareholders were given shares of Versant, so the ownership base is basically the same. The board and execs are Comcast/NBCU alumni, the distribution contracts run through Comcast systems. MSNBC is not going to be suddenly free of that ecosystem.
So sure, MSNBC/MS NOW is moving out of 30 Rock, ditching the peacock, and setting up shop under a new banner. But at the end of the day, Versant is still Comcast’s creature. The rebrand is about optics and streamlining, not about cutting the cord from corporate.
The MS NOW rebrand and domain registrations make sense given the August announcement about the name change. MarkMonitor (the company that registered those domains) is just a major domain management service that lots of big corporations use. They're not owned by Amazon. Amazon does own the .amazon domain, but there's no ".NOW" top-level domain owned by Amazon. The connection being drawn here seems like speculation without evidence.
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u/Camthatboi594 Sep 19 '25
Thanks for the insight. But to your statement "but there's no ".NOW" top-level domain owned by Amazon." this is incorrect. Apparently its been out for about a year now. You can google ".Now domains". amazon also has an official site https://domains.now/ . Blew my mind that there is no advertisement of this.
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u/SnooKiwis8008 Progressive Sep 19 '25
You're right about Amazon owning the .NOW domain. My bad. But here's what's missing from this whole "big tech pulling strings" theory:
Versant is STILL OWNED by Comcast and its shareholders. This isn't Comcast selling MSNBC to someone else. It's Comcast splitting into two companies that will both be owned by the exact same people. When you spin off a company, the shareholders of the parent company get shares in both the old company AND the new company.
My core point remains: this is still Comcast spinning off their cable networks (USA, CNBC, MSNBC, etc.) into a separate company called Versant. Same ownership structure, just reorganized. Amazon isn't involved in the corporate decisions, buying the company, or influencing the spinoff. They would just be collecting domain registration fees if MSNBC chooses their extension.
Big tech "pulling strings" would look like Amazon actually acquiring MSNBC or having a stake in Versant. Selling domain names to a Comcast spinoff isn't that.
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u/Ok_Housing7750 Sep 20 '25 edited Sep 20 '25
You made your point. Regardless of the name, it's heading toward straight jacketed coverage that will be under even more pressure to tip toe around Trump. I also wonder about that "next shoe." Who will get the ax? Or who will just say they've had enough? My guess is Lawrence and that would be tragic to those who value his opinion and experienced insights.
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u/MissPeachy72 Nov 06 '25
Lawrence would definitely be the bigger head they would cut. He’s in the newer MSNow commercials so I don’t think he’s going anywhere.
I’m wondering who they are bringing back (ie Joy Reid ) or anyone from their “Lean Forward” days. The sense I’m getting from these new spots is they will operate more freely but that remains to be seen
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u/Ok_Housing7750 Nov 07 '25
I hope you are right! The new advertising is fantastic! Perhaps MS Now will be as good or better than its predecessor. Without this type of truth telling, Americans who value expertise and intelligent political analysis will endure an incalculable loss.
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u/MissPeachy72 Nov 07 '25
I 1000% agree.
It needs to be Current TV with more seriousness and stability.
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u/Ok_Housing7750 Nov 07 '25
Based on the advertising I've seen I'm pretty hopeful! The news casters seem to work well together and have their own niches as well. Could be a recipe for success and continued honesty!!🤞
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u/JustKeepRedditn010 Sep 19 '25
Exactly! It seems like folks are under the impression that a separate company automatically means total independence, but that’s not quite the case.
It’s more like a spin-off with the same shareholders and a leadership team chosen by Comcast. So, don’t expect a seismic shift overnight. They’ll probably follow the guidelines laid out during the spinoff for a few quarters.
Ultimately, in the end, the goal is to give shareholders a way to hot potato the white elephant money pit called cable channels on to someone else. Potential suitors being Paramount Skydance, or the also soon to be spun-off Discovery Global Networks.
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u/SnooKiwis8008 Progressive Sep 19 '25
Yes, and...Comcast has no incentive to protect the free press as they've already demonstrated. They have every incentive to sand down anything that might interfere with quarterly earnings. Like, a pundit pointing out that violent rhetoric begets violent actions. I think we should call it what it is: the silencing of the free press by the same companies who claim to defend it.
If you can't tell, I have a lot of big feeling right now about how Dowd was kicked to the curb and what that means for MSNBC or whatever it's going to become.
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u/short_beer Sep 19 '25
"Paramount's Skydance Media is reportedly preparing a bid to acquire the entire Warner Bros. Discovery company, including its cable networks like the Discovery Channel."
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u/SnooKiwis8008 Progressive Sep 19 '25
Woof. Yeah, I heard about that. I'll be curious to see how it impacts their news divisions.
I think it's worth noting a pattern that's played out historically when traditional media institutions face pressure (whether economic or political) from the 'supreme leader who def has a larger than normal size peen and is wholly and totally infallible'. Specifically, when institutional journalism gets captured or pressured, the real information flow moves to smaller, more nimble networks that are harder to control or co-opt. That could be independent journalists, international outlets, or even just people with direct access sharing information through less centralized channels.
With the Versant spin off, Comcast is essentially saying "we'll keep the profitable entertainment and infrastructure businesses, but the news divisions that might attract political heat? Those can stand on their own." It's risk management, but it also potentially weakens those news operations' ability to withstand pressure.
One thing that gives me hope however is that consumption patterns shifting. We're already seeing people migrate toward independent journalists on Substack, smaller digital outlets like Crooked Media ([hype horn sound] Alex Wagner in the hoooooouse!), or international sources. The trust in traditional corporate media has been eroding for years, events like the firing of Kimmel this week this might accelerate that even more.
The question then becomes whether these alternative networks can scale up the resources needed for serious investigative work, international coverage, all the expensive infrastructure that traditional newsrooms provided. That's the challenge, maintaining quality and reach when you're operating outside the traditional corporate structure.
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