Be kind to your liberal friends today, Peak readers. They may be going through MSNBC.com withdrawal.
Late last night, Microsoft announced that it would “sell” its 50% stake in MSNBC’s website for a rumored $300 million in order to build its own online news service. MSNBC.com has already been rebranded as NBCNews.com, which will move its headquarters from the Microsoft campus in Washington State to NBC’s headquarters in New York City. According to the Associated Press article:
“Microsoft, in particular, had grown frustrated by contract terms requiring it to exclusively feature MSNBC.com content on its own websites. That exasperation was exacerbated by the MSNBC cable channel's strategy to counter Fox News Channel's appeal to conservative viewers by tailoring its programming for an audience with a liberal viewpoint.”
The article also cites Bob Visse, general manager of MSN.com, who said, “we couldn’t have the multiple news sources and the multiple perspectives that our users were telling us that they wanted.”
Additionally, the news network said that it would “create a new online destination for the MSNBC cable channel's personalities next year.”
Ouch. So, readers weren’t really feeling the “Lean Forward” gibberish spouted by the MSNBC cable news network? Not shocking. So, this is ZERO for THREE for liberal news networks – first AirAmerica closes shop, then CurrentTV’s IPO flops, and finally MSNBC folds. Hm. Maybe it's time for liberals to admit that the general population just doesn't have an appetite for liberal talking points?