Former MSNBC host Greta Van Susteren said the left-leaning Comcast-owned network was the only employer that ever “tried to tell me what to do.”
Van Susteren, the former career lawyer who got her start in television broadcasting as a legal analyst for CNN during the OJ Simpson murder trial, recalled her experiences working for MSNBC after departing Fox News in 2016.
“Nobody told me what to say or do at CNN [or] Fox,” Van Susteren told former Politico and Puck reporter Tara Palmeri on Palmeri’s newly launched Substack newsletter.
Van Susteren recalled her brief stint as host of a show on MSNBC. NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty Images
Greta Van Susteren gave an interview earlier this week to journalist Tara Palmeri. YouTube / Tara PalmeriPalmeri, who like Van Susteren is an alum of Voice of America, replied: “They wouldn’t dare. Come on, Greta. What? They wouldn’t dare with you.”
“Well, no, but that’s why I got fired at MSNBC,” Van Susteren said.
“After I’d been at CNN and Fox and then MSNBC tried to tell me what to do, I almost thought they were joking because … I had like a 15- or 18-year career in the news business and nobody ever told me [what to do],” Van Susteren said.
“So that’s why I got fired at MSNBC because they said I needed to play ball and I thought, you know, that didn’t work.”
The Post has sought comment from MSNBC.
Van Susteren, who hosted the 6 p.m. Eastern Time show “For the Record with Greta,” was abruptly let go from MSNBC just five and a half months after joining the network in late 2016 — her second sudden exit from a cable news job in less than a year.
Her husband and agent, John Coale, said they were shocked by the decision, which came without warning.
Van Susteren with Washington Post columnist Eugene Robinson during an episode of “Meet the Press” in 2017. NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty ImagesVan Susteren’s show struggled with low ratings, averaging 1 million viewers in June — an 18% drop from the previous hour — making it a weak link in MSNBC’s evening lineup.
MSNBC moved current host Ari Melber into Van Susteren’s old time slot. Melber’s show, “The Beat with Ari Melber,” has continued to air to this day.
Van Susteren first gained national recognition during the Simpson trial in the 1990s, offering legal analysis on CNN.
She then co-hosted “Burden of Proof,” a legal analysis show on the network.
In 2002, she joined Fox News, where she hosted “On the Record with Greta Van Susteren” for about 14 years.
The show was known for its in-depth interviews and coverage of both political and legal issues.
Van Susteren got her start broadcasting as a legal analyst for CNN during the OJ Simpson murder trial. handoutShe later joined Voice of America and then Newsmax, where she currently hosts a news program.
Fox News is owned by Fox Corp., sister company to The Post’s corporate parent, News Corp.
