The exit of Mr. Williams, whose contract is set to expire next month, comes amid a ratings decline in the cable news industry and restlessness among some of MSNBC’s star personnel. Rachel Maddow, the network’s top-rated anchor, is expected to refocus soon on projects outside her nightly prime-time show, although she has announced no formal plans.
A person familiar with Mr. Williams’s decision-making who requested anonymity to share private conversations said the anchor would consider his options and hoped to return to television or another media platform soon.
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It debuted at the height of the 2016 presidential election and quickly found an audience. Left-leaning viewers shocked by the election of Donald J. Trump as president were flocking to MSNBC, and they seemed to forgive Mr. Williams’s past transgressions. In May 2017, “11th Hour” scored bigger ratings than its rivals at CNN and Fox News, giving MSNBC its first outright win in the 11 p.m. time slot since 2001. (The show beat CNN but lost to Fox News in total viewers during the most recent quarter.)
(snip)
Jeff Zucker, the president of CNN, has been seeking high-wattage talent for a new streaming service, CNN+, which is set to start in 2022. Mr. Zucker approached Ms. Maddow about a job before she decided to renew her deal at MSNBC. The loss of Mr. Williams means MSNBC will have to fill his weeknight slot and possibly choose another anchor to help lead coverage of election night and other big political events. In 2020, Mr. Williams often co-anchored the cable network’s political broadcasts with Ms. Maddow and another network star, Nicolle Wallace.
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/11/09/business/media/brian-williams-msnbc.html
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Hey, perhaps he will take Cuomo's place
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