MSNBC - All News? All Afternoon - The Sad State of Affairs at MSNBC

Say what you want about the old MSNBC "Lean Forward", progressive position; the fact is it had lively discussions, excellent hosts and guests, and provided a good counterpoint to the Fox News right-wing lunacy. 

Here are some quotes from their own, "Lean Forward" promotional material - their version of a Mission Statement:

• We all want to live in a Nation that's better tomorrow than it is today.
• But for the past 20 years, we've been recycling the same conversations.
• Enough with the arguments. It's time to advance the issues.
• MSNBC has evolved into a trusted destination for American Progress.
• But while history has gotten us this far, our best days are still ahead.
• We're for people who believe in progress.
• We're for people who believe in the promise of America.
• We're for people who believe forward is the only way to go.

Sure, the "Lean Forward" MSNBC was at time cringe worthy, over the top lefty, and sure I didn't agree with everything presented, but it was a good TV place for folks of a certain ilk.

But, alas, there apparently wasn't enough of this ilk to sustain a viable business enterprise for the powers that be at NBC News.

MSNBC's decision to go all news in the afternoons is basically unwatchable. (I use "news" in the broadest sense of the word). They've become a bad CNN imitation (imagine something worse than CNN) and will drive off whatever small, but loyal liberal audience they had. And, over time this new format as a lead-in will affect the audience of the legacy politics shows that follow. That's a shame.

Let's take today as an example. As I'm writing this, MSNBC has been spending an enormous amount of time on the BREAKING NEWS of the day --- from their sister network, E! of all places. (The fact that they have to constantly promote their "sister" networks, and that E! is one of them, is more cringe worthy than anything they did in the past). 

And what exactly is the BREAKING NEWS: 

Lamar Odom has opened his eyes and is speaking! 

This coverage is accompanied by all the normal cable news accoutrements:  Live remotes from Las Vegas; interviews with witnesses (in this case, The Love Ranch's owner); and medical expert talking head commentary. And. to ensure that we viewers are fully up to date on the legal aspects of this BREAKING NEWS, MSNBC reported that because Chloe Kardashian (really!) and Odom never officially divorced, Kardashian would have legal authority in the event someone has to make an "end of life" decision to remove Odom from life support. Wow, news we can use!

If all this was not bad enough, MSNBC brought back the completely discredited Brian Williams to be the BREAKING NEWS anchor. I guess NBC management, in their obvious infinite wisdom, thought 1) we wouldn't remember;  or 2) MSNBC is so trivial, it really doesn't matter what they do.

Sad.