White House Correspondents Insider

Behind the scenes of the most powerful city in the world — Washington, D.C. — and those who cover it.

How Did MSNBC "Win" The Election Coverage?

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Joe Scarborough & Mika Brzezinski

If Nate Silver won the official election of who’s right, then who took home the popular vote? If you ask Brian Stelter, it was clearly MSNBC.

In a parallel from from years ago, it seems like the 24-hour news channel has bulked up and turned itself around since the last presidential election. The channel’s rough start as “a CNN also-ran to an Anti-Fox” came to a huge change for the 2012 election as channel has morphed into a true counter-brand to Fox News. It required a four-year re-branding message, including a series of ads where notable on-air talent like Chris Matthews, Ed Schultz and Rachel Maddow stand before historic or iconic images–not to mention most were originally shot by Spike Lee.

It could be that the tides are changing, as even Variety has Fox News as a major winner and loser on election night. Buried almost the the end in the lavish praise comes the always tantalizing anonymous sources familiar with all manners of media matter.  Supposedly The Washington Post’s Ezra Miller is being eyed for a possible weekend show along with Chris Hayes, or the coveted 8pm slot.  But that’s neither how, now or why. What’s important is recognizing that MSNBC is skewing itself to a younger market. Whether they’re accomplishing it by not having real-time debate reactions like CNN or eshewing making everything as “Extreme” as Fox News is still up in the air. There’s a shift to get rid of the old weekend documentaries (the “Lockup” series included) and tune to constant political coverage, or even discussion like The Cycle which kicks off seven hours of specialized talking heads.

Either way, it seems like Fox News may have inadvertently followed the plot of Mean Girls too closely. The only question worth answering in the follow-up must be which network is Lindsey Lohan and which is Rachel McAdams. Maybe we’ll find out at next year’s White House Correspondents Dinner?

Dylan Ratigan Rallies DC Faithful

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Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Greedy Bastards met Crooks and Liars as MSNBC’s Dylan Ratigan returned to Washington courtesy of The Week magazine. Politicos and media mavens watched the heated discussion Dylan Ratigan moderated between Senator Bernie Sanders and GOP Rep. David Schweikert. Bill Falk, editor-in-chief of The Week introduced Ratigan to the enthusiastic crowd. Ratigan’s book, Greedy Bastards, is already a New York Times bestseller and Ratigan is fearlessly flacking changes to the American system of elections and the way or economy works.

Check out photos from the event below:

Mark Halperin Back on Morning Joe

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Mark Halperin (far right) with the Game Change crew: director Jay Roach and writer Danny Strong at the WHCD BLoomberg|Vanity Fair Afterparty

Washington’s “Gang of 600” (500 + web crowd) watched the return of Mark Halperin on MSNBC who coined the phrase “Gang of 500,” to explain the movers and shakers in politics. Halperin was suspended earlier this year for his comments on the President.  MSNBC explained their decision to bring back Halperin after one month at the Television Association Critics summer tour.   Click here for The Washington Post’s coverage by Lisa DeMoraes and watch Halperin’s return in the video below:

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Chris Licht Book Party in DC [Photos]

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Chris Licht, Vice President of Programming for CBS News and former Executive Producer of MSNBC’s Morning Joe, will be celebrating the release of his new book What I Learned When I Almost Died: How a Maniac TV Producer Put Down His BlackBerry and Started to Live His Life tonight at The Jefferson Hotel in Washington, DC.  The reception was hosted by Constance Milstein, Jon Meacham, Kevin Sheekey and Tammy Haddad.

Here are some photos if you missed the live stream of the event:

Chris Licht puts down his BlackBerry

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Chris Licht, former “Morning Joe” Executive Producer, returned to the familiar MSNBC set to talk about the near-fatal cerebral hemorrhage he suffered more than a year ago after a “particularly challenging morning” at work.

Licht wrote about the experience in the newly released book “What I Learned When I Almost Died: How a Maniac TV Producer Put Down His BlackBerry and Started to Live His Life.”

The hard-charging producer told hosts and friends Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski about the “pop” he heard in his head while riding back to his Washington hotel that April morning. He was just 38 years old.

The married father of two says the experience helped him streamline and get rid of all the clutter, finding time for the things that matter in life. Licht admits that leaving “Morning Joe” for his new gig as VP of Programming at CBS News was part of the experience, learning it was time to take chances.

Check back to WHCInsider this Thursday at 7:00PM where you can watch Jon Meacham‘s interview with Chris Licht LIVE. To read an excerpt from the book click here and watch the “Morning Joe” interview below:

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Ciao! MSNBC Gets WHCD Season Rolling

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Looks like MSNBC will have plenty of vino flowing at their White House Correspondents’ Dinner After Party to be held this year at the Embassy of Italy.

Fishbowl DC’s Matt Dornic posted the invite from MSNBC President Phil Griffin, the first official one of the WHCD season.

Those attending will have a donation made in their name to DonorsChoose.org.

Ron Reagan Interview on POLITICO

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WHC Insider’s Tammy Haddad sat down with Ron Reagan to discuss his new memoir “MY FATHER AT 100.” The youngest son of President Ronald and Nancy Reagan wrote the book to commemorate what would have been his father’s 100th birthday on February 6, 2011.

Reagan candidly offers new insights on his parents’ relationship and the Reagan family dynamic; he also sets the record straight on what he actually wrote about his father and glimmers that he was not always “completely 100 percent” while in the White House.

Never one to shy away from political opinion, Reagan responds to comparisons between his father andPresident Obama. And as for those rumors about Joe Scarborough, Reagan’s former co-host on an MSNBC after-hours show, making a possible run for president or vice-president in 2012? Reagan says, “He’d be the only Republican candidate not on FOX.”

As for Keith Olbermann’s recent departure from MSNBC, Reagan said “Keith was a remarkable figure there. In many ways I think he made that network what it is today.”

You can read more and watch the two-part interview on POLITICO and for more information on the book go to www.ronreagan100.com.

From VHS to VLC: The Rise of Fred Davis' Ads on the Internet

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Fred Davis’ rise started with a giant rat named King Roy and continues today with Mourning in America. Not exactly the plot to a generic blockbuster but more about how ad-man Fred Davis, a GOP media consultant, grew his brand in grand part due to the Internet.

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