MS NOW Launches Peter Alexander’s ‘State of Play’ August 10
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- Peter Alexander will launch "State of Play" on MS NOW at 11 a.m. on Monday, August 10, with the program billed as delivering "authoritative and original reporting" on the day's biggest political and national stories.
- Alexander departed NBC News in March after 15 years on the White House beat and seven years co-anchoring weekend "Today," having first joined the network in 2004 and covering the 2012 Republican presidential race before being named a White House correspondent.
- MS NOW overhauled its daytime schedule to clear the 11 a.m. slot, where Alexander will follow Stephanie Ruhle and hand off to Alicia Menendez and later Katy Tur — reviving a one-hour Washington-focused format last anchored by Andrea Mitchell for nearly two decades.
- Versant executives framed the hire as positioning the network "at the center of the 2028 election cycle," with Alexander also serving as breaking-news anchor and contributing sports coverage to sibling properties Golf Channel and USA Network.
- Alexander gained notice during the 2020 pandemic for asking Trump, "What do you say to Americans who are watching you right now who are scared?" — prompting the then-president to retort, "I say that you're a terrible reporter!"
Why it matters: MS NOW is rebuilding its Washington-oriented brand with a high-profile hire just as it rebrands from MSNBC and the 2028 election cycle approaches. The 11 a.m. slot echoes the network's Andrea Mitchell-era Washington format, giving Alexander a daily platform to shape political coverage heading into midterms and beyond.
