Rebecca Kutler wants to spin MS NOW into the post-cable future

This is read by an automated voice.Please report any issues or inconsistencies here.

One year ago, Rebecca Kutler was promoted to president of the cable news network then known as MSNBC.Taking the helm at a major news organization is the pinnacle of a journalist’s career.But a lot changed after Kutler landed the job.In August, MSNBC announced it was dropping its name of nearly 30 years to become MS NOW — as its now-former owner NBCUniversal wanted a clean break from the channel, which was spun off to be part of a new media company called Versant.

The spin-off, which NBCU parent Comcast initiated because its cable networks are considered slow-dying properties that weighed down its stock price, was hardly a vote of confidence in the business.Losing the moniker that had decades of brand equity among its politically progressive viewers was not going to help.At a recent lunch near her Washington office, Kutler acknowledged the circumstances were less than ideal.

But with more than 20 years in the TV news business where she began as a production assistant at CNN, she understood the audience’s connection to her channel begins with the people on-screen, and not the logo.“I was pretty confident the audience wouldn’t really blink because when they turn on the their television, they see Rachel Maddow, they see Jen Psaki, they see Joe Scarborough,” Kutler said.“The fact that two letters change does not change any of those audience habits.”Still there was work to be done.

Kutler no longer had the resources of NBC News at her disposal.Instead of paying $60 million annually for its newsgathering services, she chose to have MS NOW build its own newsrooms in Washington and New York.

The operation was tested Tuesday as President Trump’s State of the Union address was the first major event MS NOW covered as a freestanding entity.Kutler has some big professional challenges, but none as daunting as the one that emerged in October when she was diagnosed with bre...