Being A Biden Administration Spokesperson “Is Not My Job Now”

The same question has come up in almost all of Symone Sanders’ press coverage ahead of her new MSNBC show’s debut this weekend. Will she cover and talk about the Biden White House objectively, given that she just left a post in the administration — for which she was a spokesperson and fierce advocate — only a few months ago?

The answer to that question is the kind of thing that will certainly become clear in the fullness of time. And while Sanders’ inaugural show this weekend includes First Lady Jill Biden as a guest, she was also quick to point out to me that the show is not going to be a destination exclusively for political junkies.

It will be a place, instead, where what viewers will get starts with that single word incorporated into the show’s branding: “Symone.”

That is to say, viewers will see the same version of the high-energy, politics- and culture-obsessed dynamo who’s worked for Senator Bernie Sanders as well as the Biden 2020 campaign, and as a spokesperson for Vice President Harris. They’ll see the same sides of her that everyone from her friends to politicians and journalists encounter, both in public and in private. Whose interests span the breadth of politics, but aren’t confined to it.

Symone Sanders: From The White House, to MSNBC

“If you’re here, you know Symone — you love Symone,” MSNBC president Rashida Jones told attendees during a private, 20-person reception and dinner in Washington DC to celebrate the launch of the show. It had been, in fact, a conversation with Jones, who asked Sanders what she wanted to do post-politics, that led to the idea for the MSNBC show in the first place.

“I’m very grateful to Rashida Jones for valuing my voice,” Sanders told me. “I have been in a lot of rooms over the course of my career. And I’ve spoken to a lot of people who have encouraged me to ‘switch it up’ if I’d like to be successful. I’m getting a show because I’ve been myself, and I appreciate that Rashida values my voice enough to let me be on this program.”

A recent POLITICO preview of her show described the new MSNBC host thus: “Fewer personalities in politics are as dynamic as Sanders’.” When I caught up with her, she was, indeed, an engaged force of near-perpetual motion. Following an appearance on MSNBC’s “Katy Tur Reports,” she squeezed in bites of lunch while answering questions from me about her new show. At one point during our conversation, the always plugged-in Sanders glanced at a screen and interrupted herself, pointing out to no one in particular, “Oh, the president’s speaking right now. He’s giving comments about the (Supreme Court’s Roe vs. Wade) draft decision, just FYI for everyone.”

The first episode of “Symone,” meanwhile, is coming on Saturday, May 7, at 4 pm ET. And it’s a bit of an experiment on the part of MSNBC, which is where Sanders’ show will air on Saturdays and Sundays. As part of a hybrid launch strategy, though, additional episodes of the show on Mondays and Tuesdays will be exclusive to Peacock, the streaming service owned by MSNBC’s corporate parent.

As for the host herself, sure, she’s not the first White House official to walk through the door between government service and a TV contract. But she’s exceedingly keen on representing something different on the air, and also delivering it in a different way.

To the latter point, she and her team storyboarded and filmed a promo for “Symone” that exists only on social media. Viewers can find it, among other places, pinned to the top of Sanders’ Twitter feed. An indication of how she wants her show — which will dive deep on not just politics but also culture, race, religion, technology, and more — to reach people wherever they are.

“I really wanted to go somewhere that has an established track record in streaming,” Sanders added, about MSNBC. “I think streaming is extremely important, not just for the future but for the right now.

“There are a number of younger people in this country who don’t have cable. So, if you don’t have cable, how are you going to get your news? We’re going to be in people’s inboxes, and I’m going to be on their timelines.” The promo that was produced only for social media, she continued, is one example of “how you can reach people and have a different conversation.”

Sanders’ addition to MSNBC also comes amid a flurry of changes and announcements at the network — which, among other things, is rumored to be where outgoing White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki is in talks to come aboard as a host. The network also just announced that senior national correspondent Chris Jansing will start anchoring MSNBC Reports at 1 pm on May 26.

NBCUniversal News Group streaming

On the streaming front, Sanders’ show will exist on Peacock alongside exclusive programs hosted by Zerlina Maxwell, Mehdi Hasan, Ayman Mohyeldin and Katie Phang. And to Sanders’ point about wanting to join forces with a company that already has a track-record in streaming, here’s what else the NBCU News Group is currently doing along those lines:

• TODAY All Day is a free-to-access streaming channel, available at both Today.com and via Peacock, for lifestyle content.
• The MSNBC Hub on Peacock offers news perspective and analysis, and it’s where shows like “Symone” will live.
• Then there’s NBC News Now — which is available at NBCNews.com/now and via NBC News’ apps across various platforms, and which is geared toward hardcore news consumers.

“I’ve been a spokesperson for the Biden administration before,” Sanders said. “That is not my job now. My job now is to pull the layers back and help illuminate some things for people. To help facilitate and orchestrate conversations that are not being had anywhere else. Teasing something out that’s going to make a difference to somebody who’s watching and paying attention.

“I believe this is a very pivotal time for our country. It’s an inflection point … and I cannot think of a better time to have a platform to cultivate a conversation. Or a better time to continue to remind people that our democracy is literally hanging on by a thread. And God bless the men and women across this country who are holding it together, whether they be journalists, local elected officials, advocates, parents — those voices matter. And I look forward to getting into all of it on the show.”