Longtime MSNBC anchor Andrea Mitchell is to shift from her daily anchor chair to a “broader role” within NBC News, it was announced Tuesday.
The departure from Andrea Mitchell Reports, which launched in 2008, was made by Mitchell on-air and via an internal memo from the NBC News Group. “As you may have seen, Andrea Mitchell shared today that after the inauguration in January, she has decided to shift from her daily anchoring duties for Andrea Mitchell Reports on MSNBC to a broader role with NBCU News Group,” the memo, signed by Rashida Jones, Rebecca Blumenstein, Janelle Rodriguez and Libby Leist, stated.
Mitchell — who has covered U.S. Presidential elections for NBC News since 1980 — will continue as a key reporter at the TV network as she will remain NBC News’ chief Washington correspondent and chief foreign affairs correspondent.
And after her new assignment, Mitchell will report across NBC News’ flagship news broadcasts, the streaming network NBC News NOW, NBCNews.com and MSNBC.
“And after sixteen years of being in the anchor chair every day, I want time to do more of what I love the most: more connecting, listening and reporting in the field, especially as whoever is elected next week is going to undertake the monumental task of handling two foreign wars and the political divisions here at home,” Mitchell told her MSNBC viewers on Tuesday in announcing she will sign off in early 2025.
A copy of the NBC News Group memo follows:
Team,
As you may have seen, Andrea Mitchell shared today that after the inauguration in January, she has decided to shift from her daily anchoring duties for “Andrea Mitchell Reports” on MSNBC to a broader role with NBCU News Group. Andrea will remain NBC News’ Chief Foreign Affairs Correspondent and Chief Washington Correspondent, and viewers will continue to see her during major breaking news events and on big political nights, including the upcoming election. Her reporting will continue to appear across the network’s flagship news broadcasts, including TODAY, NBC Nightly News, and Meet the Press, as well as NBC News NOW, NBCNews.com, and MSNBC, in addition to other innovative projects we are exploring.
“Andrea Mitchell Reports” launched in 2008 and is MSNBC’s longest-running dayside program. It became the blueprint for MSNBC’s successful “Reports” and dayside programming, and her interviews continue to drive national and international headlines. Andrea remains one of the country’s foremost and most trusted experts on foreign policy and domestic politics. Her deep sourcing and ability to land the biggest-name news-making interviews are unmatched. Her contributions to NBC News over the last 46 years have been invaluable to the network, and we are so pleased that she will remain an essential part of the News Group for years to come.
She has covered every presidential election for NBC News since 1980, including more than a dozen campaigns and seven administrations. She has reported from North Korea, Cuba, Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, Israel, the West Bank, Ukraine, Bosnia, Kosovo, Pakistan, Haiti, Sudan, Japan, and many more countries around the world. Her trailblazing reporting is why Glamour Magazine said, “Andrea Mitchell is Washington’s most resilient institution,” and why Town & Country Magazine wrote in 2023, “Americans have turned to a woman who has been a cornerstone of broadcast journalism for nearly half a century: Andrea Mitchell.”
As we prepare to cover a new administration, Andrea’s expertise and reporting are more needed than ever. Please join us in congratulating Andrea on 16 years at the anchor desk at MSNBC and for her continued work with NBC News as we prepare to cover this historic election.
Rashida Jones, Rebecca Blumenstein, Janelle Rodriguez, Libby Leist
A copy of Andrea Mitchell’s on-air announcement of her departure from the MSNBC daily show follows:
Now, a personal note. In my heart and soul, I am first and foremost a reporter and a storyteller. It’s what I started doing when I was chosen in the sixth grade to write a weekly column about activities in my elementary school for my hometown paper in New Rochelle, New York. Those are the roots that grew into my becoming an NBC News correspondent. It’s why when we launched this program in 2008 – now the longest running daytime program on MSNBC – we called it ‘Andrea Mitchell Reports.’ Our hour has always been driven by my reporting on politics and foreign policy – as well as the reporting of the best correspondents and analysts in the field.
And after sixteen years of being in the anchor chair every day, I want time to do more of what I love the most: more connecting, listening and reporting in the field, especially as whoever is elected next week is going to undertake the monumental task of handling two foreign wars and the political divisions here at home. So, after the inaugural next January – I’ve asked for the opportunity to continue covering those stories, but from a different vantage point – still with NBC News and at MSNBC. and still as chief Washington and foreign affairs correspondent. Just not on the schedule of a daily show.
From primaries, debates, elections, and inaugurals here at home … to breaking news around the globe – my goal will continue, as it has always been, to bring you, our viewers, the major newsmakers shaping our country and the world right here on MSNBC. I’ve been able to take all of you with me as I’ve covered presidential summits – and flown with U.S. Secretaries of State to Russia, Ukraine, North Korea, Japan and China, Israel, the West Bank, Jordan, Chad, Cuba, Iraq, Iran, Pakistan and Afghanistan to name just a few stops around the world.
What I’ve always loved most as I travel around the world and here across the U.S. is meeting people … meeting our viewers … meeting you. especially, hearing about your lives and learning how we can do a better job of informing you about our political leaders – and our allies and adversaries around the world. So, come next year, you’ll still see me in your living rooms, on your mobile devices and on other platforms – and perhaps also in your hometowns and cities, still asking the questions to get the answers you deserve.
Through the next week, we are all focused on covering this last stretch of the election, then a presidential transition and ultimately a new administration. But I look forward to sharing more with you after the inaugural and bringing you my reporting in new ways right here, across NBC News and MSNBC for years to come.