MSNBC's viewership tanks in May as Jen Psaki loses 47% of audience in first month in Rachel Maddow’s timeslot

MSNBC's new lineup proved to be less optimal in the month of May, as Jen Psaki lost about half the audience that would usually watch her predecessor in the time slot. Overall, MSNBC had its second-worst May viewership in the history of the network last month.

According to Fox News, the former White House press secretary for Biden, who landed a gig at MSNBC after she left the White House, took over the prime time 9 pm spot on Tuesdays through Thursdays, which previously was the slot for "The Rachel Maddow Show," with host Rachel Maddow.

"The Briefing with Jen Psaki" had on average around 971,000 total viewers from its launch on May 6 to May 28. This marked a 47 percent drop from the audience that was pulled by Maddow and Alex Wagner.

Maddow had originally been appearing on MSNBC for one day a week, but returned to the network five days per week for Trump's first 100 days in office. Viewers who are seen as more valuable in the industry, those between the ages of 25-54, had a 52 percent drop after Psaki took on Maddow's slot.

"The ReidOut," Joy Reid's show on MSNBC, was also replaced with "The Weeknight," which has been an ensemble program consisting of Symone Sanders, the ex-spokeswoman for former Vice President Kamala Harris; Alicia Menedez, the daughter of former Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ) who resigned from the Senate following a conviction on bribery charges; as well as Michael Steele a former GOP operative and RNC committee chair who has turned against the GOP.

"The Weeknight" had around a 12 percent drop in viewers, down from "The ReidOut's" 886,000 viewers to 776,000. Additionally, "The Weekend: Primetime" with Antonia Hylton, Catherine Rampell, Elise Jordan and Ayman Mohyeldin has dropped down 6 percent in comparison to the program that used to fill the spot.