Rashida Jones to Become First Black President of MSNBC

Rashida Jones will replace Phil Griffin as president of MSNBC in February 2021, the network has announced. With this new role, Jones will become the first black woman in history to serve as president of a major cable news network. Jones, 39, currently serves as senior vice president of MSNBC and oversees daytime news coverage.

The move was announced by Cesar Conde, NBCUniversal News Group Chairman, in an email to NBC employees. According to reports, Conde said:

“Rashida knows and understands MSNBC, in part because it’s where she started when she first joined NBCU seven years ago,” Conde wrote in an email to NBC News employees. “She knows that it is the people who work here that make it great, and she understands its culture. She also appreciates the impact and potential of the brand.”

Prior to her role at NBC, Rashida Jones worked at the Weather Channel.