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The media landscape is as fragmented and diverse as it has ever been, with the rise of New Media in the form of podcasts, Substacks and other independent journalism platforms offering consumers a myriad of news and analysis options.
Several prominent journalists who were well-known as the face of their respective networks went the independent route in 2025, though not all of their own accord. What they did, in all cases, was speak louder than before, suggesting that the corporate chains of their former employers no longer blocked their true ideas.
Here are five statistics that have come out of the mainstream media this past year.
CNN STAFF SHOCKED BY JIM ACOSTA’S QUICK EXIT FROM NETWORK
Jim Acosta
Known for his lively reporting style as a White House correspondent and news anchor at CNN, Acosta announced in January that he was leaving the network after being offered the midnight slot instead of the noon slot.
The left-leaning anchor, who has edited his coverage of President Donald Trump and others, has started “The Jim Acosta Show” on Substack, where he hosts a free podcast as well as blogs and reports.
In one of the strangest moments of the year in journalism, Acosta in August “interviewed” an animated avatar of slain teenager Joaquin Oliver, who died in the Parkland massacre, to promote a message of gun control.
Although the child’s father approved of the incident, the interview drew widespread criticism about the ethics of putting words into a dead person’s mouth and highlighted Acosta’s behavior.
Joy Reid
JOY REID SAYS MSNBC FIRED HER WITHOUT WARNING, SLAMS HER TRUMP COVERAGE, GAZA LED TO OUSTER
The longtime MSNBC anchor — now known as MS NOW — was abruptly fired in February from hosting “The ReidOut.” Reid thought it was because of his outspokenness about the Gaza war with Trump but said he never found out the real reason for his dismissal.
Reid started “The Joy Reid Show” in June, where she brought her far-left commentary and discussions to more than 382,000 subscribers on YouTube and counting.
Among his highlights this year, including numerous talk show appearances, sharing a video suggesting that the song “Jingle Bells” is racist, mocking Erika Kirk’s dress after her husband Charlie was killed and suggesting that Trump may not have actually been shot last year.
Terry Moran
The longtime ABC correspondent parted ways with the network in June after he was suspended for his social media comments against Trump and policy adviser Stephen Miller, in which he called each man a “world-class hater.”
Moran, who a few weeks earlier had interviewed Trump in the Oval Office, went the Substack route, naming his site “Real Patriotism.”
ABC NEWS CORRESPONDENT HITS FORMER EMPLOYER WITH TRUMP FOR LACK OF ‘COMBINEMENT OF OPINIONS’
Terry Moran spent nearly 28 years at ABC News. (Paula Lobo/Getty)
He also praised the expansion of other media outlets that he is now a part of with his Substack.
“The new media is dirty, chaotic and sometimes misinformed. But it cannot be denied that this new journalism is more democratic, more diverse and less captured by corporate interests pretending that ‘objectivity’ means silence about the truth. The future has arrived,” he wrote.
Chuck Todd
Todd left NBC News in January after an 18-year run at the network and relaunched his “Chuck ToddCast” podcast in April.
He cited the desperation of the country’s media when he made this move.
CHUCK TODD WARNS DEMS DRINKING FROM TRUMP’S SHORE, ‘TAKING THE BAIT’ IN RECONCILIATION
Former NBC founder Chuck Todd during an August episode of his podcast. (Screenshot/”Chuck Toddcast”/YouTube)
“The reason I’m ready to move, I think the media has a lot of work to do to regain trust and I think, frankly, the national media is not a place they’re going to be able to do it,” Todd said.
The former “Meet the Press” host doesn’t hesitate to talk about Democrats on his podcast, but many of his comments are anti-Trump.
Jennifer Rubin
The longtime Washington Post columnist left the newspaper in January to anger owner Jeff Bezos, who rejected the paper’s endorsement of Kamala Harris for president last year.
The staunchly anti-Trump writer, who was once an opinion columnist for the paper but turned to the left, started “The Contrarian” by Norm Eisen, a “pro-democracy” Substack that will have “a fearless and different reported opinion and cultural commentary without false moderation, snobbery or political bullshit.”
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“We have watched as corporate media owners and billionaires abuse the trust of their audiences and undermine the critical role journalism plays in a liberal democracy,” Rubin said in a statement at the time. “Instead of protecting democratic values, they have allowed the worst threats to democracy – Donald Trump and his supporters – at a time when a strong and independent press is most important. We need another place, a truly representative place that is not afraid of the authorities and not willing to compromise or bend the knee.”
