Why Joy Reid won't 'overthink' her new show, feels free to cover topics like Charlie Kirk Ralphie Aversa, USA TODAYOctober 2, 2025 at 11:00 PM 0 NEW YORK – Joy Reid, the former MSNBC host who now has her own YouTube show, calls it a "relief" that she no longer has to worry about her bosses' opinions...
- - Why Joy Reid won't 'overthink' her new show, feels free to cover topics like Charlie Kirk
Ralphie Aversa, USA TODAYOctober 2, 2025 at 11:00 PM
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NEW YORK – Joy Reid, the former MSNBC host who now has her own YouTube show, calls it a "relief" that she no longer has to worry about her bosses' opinions of what she discusses on the show or posts on social media. But with her new show comes a new group of challenges.
Reid, 56, worked at MSNBC for more than a decade. Her weeknight show, "The ReidOut," launched in 2020 before new network president Rebecca Kutler announced its cancellation in February.
Reid recalls trying to figure out a new path of creating content and receiving advice from Katie Couric, who similarly launched her own media company and interviewed Reid for her Substack.
The former "Today" host and "CBS Evening News" anchor told her "just don't overthink it, which I think was smart because I was overthinking it for sure," Reid says of creating her show. "She's like, 'You're not doing TV anymore. So it doesn't have to be a TV show. You just have to say your feelings, say your thoughts, be accurate, be factual, but don't overthink it.' "
Joy Reid leaves MSNBC: Her show 'The ReidOut' has been canceled
"Uh, no," Joy Reid says when asked whether she'd want to return to TV. The former MSNBC host now helms "The Joy Reid Show" on YouTube.Joy Reid doesn't think she could've covered Charlie Kirk's assassination at MSNBC
Reid says she has no plans to return to TV, in part because she is enjoying the freedom that comes with her digital platform. The host says she received "a lot" of calls from her bosses at MSNBC about show topics: She says Gaza and "white Christian nationalism" were two deemed "too uncomfortable" to cover on her show.
When contacted by USA TODAY, MSNBC declined to comment.
"I feel like the constrictions that media is placing on itself are because the owners of it need to do business that the administration can stand in the way of," Reid says. "They're looking at this from a business point of view: 'We don't want to run afoul of this president. We don't want a $10 million lawsuit. We don't want to be in a fight with the president. And so we'd rather restrict the journalists and be safe than let the journalists do their jobs.'"
She cites the media's coverage of political commentator Charlie Kirk as an example.
"There's no way I could have covered it (at MSNBC)," she says. "I wouldn't have been able to play the tape even of him attacking me."
Reid and Kirk sparred after the Supreme Court's 2023 decision to strike down affirmative action policies at universities. Reid said on MSNBC that she was qualified to attend Harvard but would have never been on recruiters' radars without the policies. Kirk implied on his radio show that those who benefited from the policies did not earn their spot, singling out Reid and several prominent Black women, including former first lady Michelle Obama.
"You do not have the brain processing power to otherwise be taken really seriously," Kirk said. "You had to go steal a white person's slot to go be taken somewhat seriously."
Kirk, one of the country's most influential conservative activists, was fatally shot Sept. 10 while speaking at Utah Valley University as a part of his America Comeback Tour. The 31-year-old invited college students to debate and "prove me wrong" on any issue, and was a speaker at the Republican National Convention in 2024.
In the wake of Kirk's assassination, MSNBC commentator Matthew Dowd confirmed the network terminated him for on-air comments he made about Kirk. Washington Post opinion columnist Karen Attiah said the news outlet let her go after she referenced Kirk's comments about affirmative action on Bluesky.
Reid says that her former colleagues at media networks are "afraid of losing their jobs" for speaking freely or reporting "the way that they know they're capable of."
"I feel like we're in an environment that's very 'McCarthy-ite' right now," she says, adding that "there's a McCarthyism that's creeping from the government," which is aiming to "vilify entire groups of people in political parties."
As for covering Kirk, Reid hosted a two-hour show entitled "Charlie Kirk's Untimely Death and the Media." The video is her most viewed livestream on the channel, with 428,000 views.
Joy Reid sets her sights on a 'high' birthday goal
"The Joy Reid Show" lives on podcast feeds and YouTube, where she has amassed more than 317,000 subscribers. She originally set a goal to hit 1 million by her birthday on Dec. 8, joking that number would make a good birthday present. She acknowledges it's a "high goal."
"Don Lemon is going to be racing me too, because he's getting close," Reid says of the former CNN anchor who has also struck out on his own. Lemon sits at 919,000 subscribers. "He's another person that's given me just incredibly great advice. I'm just lucky I have the right friends."
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Joy Reid talks MSNBC departure, Charlie Kirk and her YouTube show
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