Joy Reid says MSNBC is 'like Sesame Street to people,' calls liberal network a 'lifeline'

"We were a diverse, interesting crew. We had all kinds of people. We had gay folks, straight folks, men, women, Blacks, Latinos, Asians, the very few of the Asian, you know, there are not that many Asian Americans that even get these opportunities. We had like multiple Asian Americans. We had all these different people. So we were relatable, right? We were like 'Sesame Street' to people," she said. 

Reid also said "White Americans" approached her frequently to tell her they missed her MSNBC show. She added that Black Americans would tell her, "I will never watch MSNBC again. We're done." 

Reid brought up the "Sesame Street" comparison again later in the discussion. 

"If MSNBC was like 'Sesame Street' to people, right? I was like if Grover went and got their own show, right?" she said, arguing that viewers were more devoted to personalities than channels. 

She said her viewers followed her to her podcast, "The Joy Reid Show," because they trusted her as an individual. 

The left-leaning network's new name will be "My Source News Opinion World," or MS NOW. 

Mark Lazarus, who will serve as the head of the new company, Versant, told The Wall Street Journal that MS NOW would continue catering to a progressive audience and prioritize "holding the political figures from both parties to account."