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MSNBC has finally confirmed former White House press secretary Jen Psaki will host a streaming show set to debut in 2023 after months of speculation and questions over her cable news feature.
Psaki will also appear as an analyst and on NBC and MSNBC’s primetime special election programming throughout the midterms and 2024 presidential election.
She is the latest member of the Biden administration to join the left-leaning network after it hired Kamala Harris‘ senior spokesperson Symone Sanders to Peacock.
Psaki’s new salary is unclear, but it could be upwards of seven figures.
She had her last day in the White House briefing room two weeks ago and was replaced by Karine Jean-Pierre.
Her departure came with Biden facing dismal approval ratings and the Democrats facing heavy losses to Republicans in the November midterms.
She was known during her tenure for her pointed exchanges with reporters, including Fox News’ Peter Doocy, and faced criticism from correspondents at the back of the briefing room for not giving them the opportunity to ask more questions.
Psaki was tight-lipped about the move in her final days in the Biden administration and is still facing pressure from ethics organizations to be transparent about any negotiations she had with MSNBC before she left her taxpayer-funded job.
Michael Chamberlain, director of ethics watchdog Protect the Public’s Trust, told DailyMail.com of Psaki’s announcement: ‘We wish Ms. Psaki all the best in her new role.
‘However, the lack of transparency and ethics concerns involved in her job search while serving as White House Press Secretary set a horrible precedent, especially for an administration touting itself as the most ethical and most transparent in history. We hope for better from the White House in the future.’
MSNBC has finally confirmed former White House press secretary Jen Psaki will host a streaming show set to debut in 2023 after months of speculation and questions over her cable news feature
Psaki tweeted that she was thrilled to join the Biden-friendly network and that ‘breaking down the facts and getting to the bottom of what’s driving the issues that matter most to people in this country has never been more important’
Psaki’s new show, set to debut in the first quarter of 2023, will ‘bring together her unique perspective from behind the podium and her deep experience in the highest levels of government and presidential politics,’ the network said in a statement Tuesday.
Psaki most recently served as White House spokesperson for the first 16 months of the Biden administration. She previously served as White House communications director under former President Barack Obama and as the spokeswoman for the Department of State.
‘Her extensive experience in government and on the campaign trail and perspective as a White House and Washington insider is the type of analysis that sets MSNBC apart,’ MSNBC President Rashida Jones said in a statement.
‘She’s a familiar face and trusted authority to MSNBC viewers, and we look forward to her insight during this consequential election season.’
Psaki said she was ‘thrilled’ to join the network in her own statement.
‘My time in government, from the White House to the State Department, and years before that on national political campaigns will fuel the insight and perspective I bring to this next chapter.
‘Fact-based and thoughtful conversations about the big questions on the minds of people across the country have never been more important, and I’m thrilled to join the incredible MSNBC team.’
‘I can’t wait to create a space on streaming where we break down the facts, get to the bottom of what’s driving the issues and hopefully have some fun along the way.’
She also tweeted: ‘Thrilled to join the incredible MSNBC family this fall. Breaking down the facts and getting to the bottom of what’s driving the issues that matter most to people in this country has never been more important.’
On her final day in the White House, Psaki chided a reporter for an African news site after he repeatedly interrupted her and other journalists.
Simon Ateba, who runs the website Today News Africa, repeatedly shouted ‘will you take a question from the back of the room?’ interrupting his press colleagues as well as Psaki.
Ateba first interrupted Associated Press reporter Zeke Miller, and then began shouting over ABC News reporter Mary Bruce as she tried to ask a question.
Bruce, her frustration evident, responded ‘Simon, please stop,’ but Ateba was undeterred and repeated his demands.
‘If you can spread the questions from across the room and all of us at the back of the room,’ shouted Ateba.
In a Politico story in April, anonymous members of the White House press core said Psaki’s aptitude for her job and quick wit made it ‘boring’ for reporters who tried to squeeze a story out of her during her daily briefings.
She had her last day in the White House briefing room two weeks ago and was replaced by Karine Jean-Pierre
Psaki will also appear as an analyst and on NBC and MSNBC’s primetime special election programming throughout the midterms and 2024 presidential election
One journalist complained that ‘jawing’ with Psaki over tough questions made people look like ‘a**holes’ compared to the moral authority many reporters felt in challenging Trump administration officials.
‘Jen [Psaki] is very good at her job, which is unfortunate,’ one unnamed reporter who covered both Trump and Biden told Politico.
‘And the work is a lot less rewarding, because you’re no longer saving democracy from [first Trump Press Secretary] Sean Spicer and his Men’s Wearhouse suit.’
They added, ‘Jawing with Jen just makes you look like an a**hole.’
It’s part of a greater look Politico took at media coverage of Donald Trump versus today’s coverage of President Joe Biden — finding that the later has been a ‘journalistic sedative’ compared to the bombastic and adversarial headlines Trump made with his frequent clashes with the press.
One news executive said there simply was not much interest in the White House anymore, despite reporters’ best efforts.
‘It’s not like there’s a lack of trying — these reporters are there every day to get anything out of the Biden White House,’ the executive said.
‘But it’s boring there, it’s not what it was.’
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