Rachel Maddow is facing a wave of backlash after her fiery clash with MSNBC leadership, as new details about her behind-the-scenes disputes come to light. The fallout has been swift — and it’s hitting her where it hurts most: her ratings.
Maddow’s show has seen a sharp decline, losing over five million viewers, which marks a staggering 22% drop in viewership. Since Donald Trump’s return to the White House, The Rachel Maddow Show has slipped from 2.3 million nightly viewers to just 1.8 million. The losses are even worse among the key 25–54 demographic, with Maddow shedding nearly a third of that crucial audience segment, according to Fox News.
The downturn isn’t just a blip — it’s a trend. Compared to this time last year, Maddow’s audience has shrunk by 24% over the first two months of 2025, suggesting that her influence is waning with Joe Biden out of office.
Despite the slump, Maddow’s program has managed to hang onto its time slot most nights, except for Tuesday when President Trump’s joint session address stole the spotlight.
The ratings collapse follows Maddow’s very public on-air meltdown criticizing MSNBC’s newly appointed president, Rebecca Kutler, over the exit of Joy Reid and other non-white primetime hosts. Maddow, who commands a $25 million annual salary, lambasted the network for what she called a “disturbing” pattern of pushing minority hosts out of major slots. Katie Phang and Jonathan Capehart, who also lost their prime shows, will stay at MSNBC in lesser roles.
Industry newsletter Puck pointed out the awkward optics: while Maddow decried the loss of diversity, her own hefty salary — even after a $5 million pay cut — still outweighs the combined earnings of hundreds of staffers working behind the scenes to produce her weekly Monday show.
Adding fuel to the fire, MSNBC recently laid off 125 producers, many from Maddow’s team, though 110 are reportedly set to be rehired.
Maddow had agreed to cover the first 100 days of Trump’s new term before resuming her once-a-week schedule in April. Yet her critics, even among fellow liberals, are growing louder. Some on platforms like Bluesky have called for Maddow to quit if she truly believes MSNBC is betraying its values.
“If Rachel Maddow is really outraged, she should walk away from MSNBC — and leave the money on the table,” one user argued, while another challenged white progressives to boycott mainstream networks altogether.
Meanwhile, MSNBC is preparing to roll out a new primetime lineup featuring Symone Sanders and Alicia Menendez — a move that Maddow conspicuously failed to acknowledge in her criticism, despite their diverse backgrounds.
As pressure mounts and ratings continue to dip, many are wondering: can Maddow weather this storm — or is this the beginning of the end for MSNBC’s biggest star?
