Gaza Stripped: Liberal Indian American Host Mehdi Hasan Announces Exit From MSNBC After Show Cancellation
- A caustic critic of Israel’s treatment of Palestinians, the Hyderabadi’s departure comes after the network announced in November that it was canceling his show amid a broader reshuffling of its weekend programming lineup.
Mehdi Hasan is not just exiting the MSNBC show he anchored every Sunday for the past three years, he is leaving the network altogether. Announcing his departure on the last episode of “The Mehdi Hasan Show” on Sunday (Dec. 7), the liberal host said he is leaving “to look for a new challenge,” and that his time spent at MSNBC was an “absolute blast.” Noting that he’s “so, so proud of what we’ve achieved on this show on this network,” he thanked his viewers “for tuning in” and for their support and feedback. “But as they say, new year, new plans.”
The son of Indian immigrants from Hyderabad, who regularly went viral for his combative interviews, was a strident critic of the Israeli government’s actions in Gaza and a strong supporter of the Palestinian people. His departure comes after it was announced in November that MSNBC was canceling his show amid a broader reshuffling of the network’s weekend programming lineup. Initially, it was reported that Hasan would continue to stay at the network as an on-camera analyst and fill-in host.
Although MSNBC said the changes were made with 2024 election coverage in mind, those supporting Hasan claim that the liberal host, one of the few Muslim hosts in cable news, lost his job for his views on Israel and Palestine. Politico noted that the news came as “MSNBC has faced scrutiny for its treatment of Muslim on-air personalities since the outset of Israel’s war with the Palestinian militant group Hamas.”
Hasan’s hour will be led by Ayman Mohyeldin beginning next week as Mohyeldin expands his show to four hours on Saturdays and Sundays.
Hasan formerly worked for Al Jazeera English and the Intercept. He began hosting his Peacock show in 2020 and joined MSNBC’s lineup the following year. The show later moved over to MSNBC in March 2021, airing on Sunday evenings. The show averaged around 400,000 viewers a night, making it one of the lower-performing shows on the network