Rachel Maddow sees pay cut from $30 to $25 MILLION as MSNBC ratings tank: report

On Thursday, it was reported that MSNBC's ratings for Morning Joe have dropped like a rock since the Mar-a-Lago meet-up. The drop is worse among those 25 to 54 years old, with a drop of 41 percent, per the Daily Mail. Pay cuts to talent at the network, including the large cut to Maddow, appear to be preparations for whatever happens next. CNN, as well, has been cutting down on the salaries of its top talent.

Maddow regularly draws more people to MSNBC than any of the other hosts, likely the reason for her enormous salary. Keeping her on the air for at least one night a week is reportedly non-negotiable for the spin-off of MSNBC as Comcast is looking to spin off the asset into a different publicly traded company.

On Monday, when Scarborough and Brezinski announced the meeting with Trump, they had 770,000 viewers. By Wednesday, the viewership had dropped to 647,000, and each day since, views have been lower. Even though there has been heavy backlash from its mostly liberal audience, staffers for Morning Joe have said the meeting with Trump was "f*cking worth it." The cohosts, throughout the years with Trump, have made numerous accusations about the president-elect being a racist, misogynist, and other labels.

According to Nielsen Media Research, Fox News now has command of around 72 percent of cable news viewers during primetime. Meanwhile, MSNBC, as well as CNN, have seen ratings drop precipitously since the election.

One source close to the situation said, "We were so Harris propaganda that when she lost, viewers were shocked. It turned into one giant circle jerk and echo chamber. If MSNBC wants to be of service to its viewers, they can't keep them in fantasy land."