Rebecca Kutler sharpens MS Now's identity
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MS Now president Rebecca Kutler. Photo: Denny Henry for Axios
MS Now is leaning into a more focused, digital strategy that includes a subscription product, live events and new talent, president Rebecca Kutler told Axios on Friday in Washington, D.C.
Why it matters: The strategy underscores how MS Now is positioning itself after spinning out from Comcast and into Versant with a model that prioritizes fans and audience engagement over traditional TV distribution.
What she's saying: "We are not building another streaming product. That's not the business we're getting into," Kutler said at Axios Live's annual WHCD weekend kick-off brunch. "What we're aiming to do is build a really rich community."
- "Our talent are rolling up their sleeves," Kutler told Axios' Sara Fischer, adding how hosts are experimenting with ways to connect directly with audiences including video customization, driven by AI.
- "But it also means meetups in real life and using the power of our brand and the power of our audience to bring people together in spaces and places," she added.
Zoom in: MS Now has made new hires with the intention of expanding its political expertise and digital bench.
- Political analyst Kabir Khanna is joining, which Kutler said was announced internally just before this event.
- Kutler also noted JM Rieger from the Washington Post joining to help create more digital video.
- At the same time, marquee talent have remained. Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski re-signed their "Morning Joe" contracts with MS Now through the end of 2029.
The big picture: MS Now is betting that an editorial strategy focused on politics will help it stand out in an increasingly crowded and fragmented media landscape.
- "When we built this newsroom, we tried to be very intentional," Kutler said. "We didn't build a newsroom for everything. That's not what our audience wants, and frankly, there's a lot of newsrooms like that out there already."
- "What we decided was let's build a newsroom that has a lot of intentional focus on what our audience is telling us they care about the most, and that includes first and foremost, politics, policy, and everything that drives elections in America," she added.
What to watch: MS Now is hosting its WHCD party after the dinner on Saturday at the same time as NBC News.
- "More is more in having great newsrooms and great journalism, and for this weekend ... more is more in having great parties," Kutler said.
