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MSNBC Hires Former Obama White House Staffer as Head of Communications
The Wrap ^ | November 21, 2014 | Jordan Chariton

Posted on 11/21/2014 10:02:02 AM PST by 2ndDivisionVet

Rachel Racusen joins MSNBC as VP of Communications, replacing Lauren Skowronski

MSNBC has hired Rachel Racusen to be its Vice President of Communications, President Phil Griffin announced Friday. She will start on December 8th.

Racusen comes from the Obama White House, where she last served as Associate Communications Director. Other roles she undertook included Deputy Communications Director for the president's re-election campaign; Deputy Communications Director for the 2013 Presidential Inaugural Committee, and Director of Public Affairs for FEMA, where she led response efforts to Hurricane Irene among other natural disasters.

“I'm thrilled to add Rachel to our senior team,” Griffin said in a statement. “She has great experience, she's creative, strategic and passionate about our brand. She'll be a tremendous asset to the network.”

Racusen replaces Lauren Skowronski, who left her post as communications chief after being promoted to VP of Corporate Communications for NBCUniversal over the summer.

Racusen's insertion as communications chief for MSNBC comes at a time where the network has fielded mostly negative media coverage for losing ground in the ratings as well as occasional serious on-air gaffes from talent–one of the most serious being Martin Bashir's comments about Sarah Palin, which led to his resignation last year.

In the interim period between Skowronski's departure and Racusen's hiring, MSNBC's Director of Media Relations Diana Rocco filled in as communications chief. Rocco will now return full-time to her post as communications representative for programs like “All In” with Chris Hayes.

For those not aware of the behind-the-scenes media minutia, folks like Rocco, Racusen, and Skowronski are the ones who predictably develop permanent headaches from the mass of phone calls, emails, and smoke signals coming in from reporters like myself.

A friday tip of the hat to them all (although I'll probably make you mad at some point later in the day).


TOPICS: Government; Politics; TV/Movies
KEYWORDS: msm; msnbc; obama; racusen; revolvingdoor; television; whreassignment
Quadrupling her pay, I should think. Union College, Schenectady, New York, class of 2004
1 posted on 11/21/2014 10:02:03 AM PST by 2ndDivisionVet
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

MSNBC continues to be a fully-involved partner with democrats.

Our media is so completely sold out.


2 posted on 11/21/2014 10:04:51 AM PST by Cringing Negativism Network
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

Safe to assume another sycophant.


3 posted on 11/21/2014 10:05:06 AM PST by JohnnyP
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

Nice choice now that the Repubs have taken over.

Pray America is waking


4 posted on 11/21/2014 10:06:03 AM PST by bray (Palin/Perry)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

of course, they did. It’s what they do.


5 posted on 11/21/2014 10:06:18 AM PST by morphing libertarian
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

Logrolling in our time.


6 posted on 11/21/2014 10:07:02 AM PST by februus
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To: 2ndDivisionVet
If you read Sharyl Atkisson's terrific expose "Stonewalled," you will see that this is S.O.P. today.


7 posted on 11/21/2014 10:07:15 AM PST by Travis McGee (www.EnemiesForeignAndDomestic.com)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

MSNBC is an integral part of the White House Propaganda Machine.


8 posted on 11/21/2014 10:11:24 AM PST by windsorknot
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

Revolving door.


9 posted on 11/21/2014 10:20:00 AM PST by RushIsMyTeddyBear
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

There’s are jobs waiting for the Obamas at MSNBC if they ever decide to leave the White House


10 posted on 11/21/2014 10:39:07 AM PST by molson209 (Blank)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet
No President in US history has controlled so much of the media, print & written, as His Royal Highness.
11 posted on 11/21/2014 10:45:41 AM PST by TexasCajun
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

12 posted on 11/21/2014 10:47:11 AM PST by McGruff (If you like your current El Presidente you can keep him, period.)
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To: McGruff

The only change is that she went from being the PAID mouthpiece for the Obama Admnistration to the UNPAID (at least directly by taxpayers) mouthpiece of the Obama Administration. If she loses her “job”, I am certain she will be employable by CBS “News” whose president is the brother of the WH press spokesthing.


13 posted on 11/21/2014 10:50:43 AM PST by laconic
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To: 2ndDivisionVet
Pat Caddell called it.

Pat Caddell slams the media: They have become an “enemy of the people” Sept. 29, 2012(video 26:00)

Emotional Pat Caddell on the MSM ignoring Benghazi: “These people have no honor!” Oct. 27, 2012 (video at link 4:06)

CADDELL ON BENGHAZI: PRESS HAS FAILED THE COUNTRY, FACTS WILL PUT OBAMA IN DEEP TROUBLE May 13, 2014

The MSM are enemies of the people!

14 posted on 11/21/2014 1:12:26 PM PST by TigersEye (ISIS is the tip of the spear. The spear is Islam.)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

So it’s official now?


15 posted on 11/21/2014 1:13:13 PM PST by uncitizen (I weep for my country)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

Incestuous.


16 posted on 11/22/2014 5:02:04 AM PST by Amagi (Lenin: "Socialized Medicine is the Keystone to the Arch of the Socialist State.")
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