MSNBC Moves Reverend Al Sharpton’s Show to Sunday Mornings


Courtesy NBC Universal

Courtesy NBC Universal

As part of a larger retooling, MSNBC has moved PoliticsNation with Reverend Al Sharpton to 8 AM on Sunday mornings. The program has aired at 6 PM on weekdays since its inception in 2011.

As a result of the rescheduling, Up with Steve Kornacki will only air from 9-10 AM on Sundays while continuing to air from 8-10 AM on Saturdays.

The New York Daily News broke the news and had an interview with the Reverend.

While Ed Schultz’s move to weekends years ago (before his eventual return to weekdays) was widely seen as a demotion, Reverend Al is trying to paint it as anything but. He told the Daily News that his new show will be more in line with what he intended it to be and that his Sunday show will set the agenda. Since his program will air an hour before the other Sunday public affairs show, Sharpton says that they will now have to react to him, to the news from his program. In that sense, Sharpton may have a point. CNN’s Inside Politics, a roundtable with political journalists, does impact the Washington agenda and discussion for a bit and the show is often mentioned in the Sunday editions of Politico’s Playbook under the banner of “Sunday Best.”

“I’m very happy,” he told the Daily News. “First, I can reach a wider audience of people who don’t get home by 6 at night. Second, I can now get the A-list guests and newsmakers I want. And third, a Sunday morning host is what I always wanted to be,” he continued.

PoliticsNation will have its last weekday edition on September 4 before resuming on Sundays on October 4. The slot will be temporarily filled with rolling news like the other recently cancelled programs until a replacement is announced.

Some editions of his program will be taped beforehand while others will be live.

“I never wanted to be a weeknight pundit. I wanted to be a Sunday morning newsmaker. I wanted to be Dr. Martin Luther King, not Larry King.”


About Tyler

Tyler is the chief media reporter for TKNN, with the news organization since its founding in November of 2010. He has previously served as chief political reporter and chief political anchor for TKNN.

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