MSNBC has expanded its Washington Bureau, adding seven new hires from Bloomberg, NBC News and The Hill, as the network expands its editorial team ahead of the Versant spinoff.
Akayla Gardner, Ryan Reilly, Priya Sridhar, Mychael Schnell, Arielle Hixson, Julia Jester and Alex Tabet will all join the network’s D.C. operation covering the Trump administration. The growing bureau will be led by MSNBC’s Washington Bureau Chief Sudeep Reddy, an alumnus of The Wall Street Journal and Politico.
As MSNBC embarks on a new independent newsgathering mission, diverging from Comcast under new conglomerate Versant, the network has brought on top talent on both the editorial and executive sides. Monday, the network announced that L.A.-based Jacob Soboroff would join the team as a senior political correspondent, while award-winning investigative journalist Carol Leonnig left The Washington Post after 25 years to join as a senior investigative correspondent.
Coming from Bloomberg as a White House correspondent, Gardner will serve as a White House reporter for the network. She covered the 2024 election extensively and authors the weekly newsletter “Washington Edition: Inside the White House” with insights into the current administration.
Reilly joins MSNBC from NBC News and led coverage of the Trump administration’s overhaul of the Justice Department and his coverage of the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol was even cited by the FBI and the Jan. 6 committee. At MSNBC, Reilly will serve as a senior justice reporter.
Emmy Award-winning journalist Sridhar will serve as a Pentagon reporter for MSNBC. She previously worked at NBC News and spent the last 10 years as an officer in the United States Navy Reserve.
The Hill’s Schnell and NBC Washington’s Hixson have been tapped as reporters for MSNBC’s Washington bureau, with Schnell covering Congress. Meanwhile, Jester served as a producer covering the White House at NBC News but will now report for the MSNBC Washington operation. Tabet also joins the operation from NBC News. He previously worked on several documentary projects, including “W: George W. Bush” and “Slay the Dragon.”
Last November, Comcast announced a spinoff of NBCUniversal’s cable networks and digital assets, called Versant. It will house MSNBC, CNBC, USA Network, Oxygen, E!, SYFY and Golf Channel, as well as digital assets Fandango, Rotten Tomatoes, GolfNow and SportsEngine. It is expected to reach over 65 million U.S. households and generate $7 billion in annual revenue.
