Axios interview: Joe Scarborough adds to "Morning Joe" buffet

Four hours of "Morning Joe" just isn't enough for Joe Scarborough. The MSNBC host tells Axios he's launching an early-afternoon newsletter, "The Tea, Spilled by Morning Joe," for viewers who crave a lunchtime hit."Your newsletter in the morning really drives the day," Scarborough told me. "We thought by noon, it'd be time for another one."Why it matters: Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski, whose show has been shaping and driving elite opinion for nearly 20 years, have expansive plans for their "Morning Joe" franchise. In addition to "The Tea," debuting today, they'll host virtual town halls where fans can quiz the cast."I just wanted to build out the community ... so we're not just a 6-to-10am [ET] show that will then have viral clips living throughout the rest of the day," Scarborough said."We're going to expand the podcast, have afternoon updates on the podcast. We're going to have [virtual] community town hall meetings at least once a week. People who are signed up with the newsletter can call in and talk to members of the 'Morning Joe' family," including Willie Geist, Jonathan Lemire, Mike Barnicle and more.MSNBC announced yesterday that its rebrand as MS NOW (as a Versant spinoff from Comcast NBCUniversal) will take place Nov. 15, with the message: "Same Mission. New Name."Scarborough told me that when he met with Versant CEO Mark Lazarus and MS NOW president Rebecca Kutler, they told him: "Be entrepreneurial ... Whatever you want to do, be creative, let's do it!""It's like a tech startup where they're saying: 'Throw s--t at the wall and see what sticks — take chances. Let's have fun with this.'"Zoom in: Beyond the typical "Morning Joe" fare of Washington juice and foreign-policy intrigue, "The Tea" will include Scarborough's take on pop culture, sports, Hollywood, Broadway and Wall Street.Scarborough said the newsletter will embrace the Axios hallmarks of Smart Brevity and elegant efficiency. "If the foundation of French cooking is three things — butter, butter, butter," he said, "the goal for me, visually, is white space, white space, white space.""Morning Joe," under longtime executive producer Alex Korson, averages 250+ expert voices each month and is the most-watched news show in D.C. — a rare DMZ for lawmakers of both parties. It's MSNBC's most downloaded daily podcast and has over 130 million views on YouTube so far this year. Get the newsletter ... FAQ on MS NOW.

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