MS Now connects ‘blue dots’ at Texas fan event: ‘I always feel hope when I watch them’

In 2024, Donald Trump and JD Vance carried Tarrant county, Texas, by 42,125 votes. So why, on the afternoon of 26 September, was the arena at the University of Texas-Arlington filled with nearly 5,000 super fans cheering for liberal media darlings Rachel Maddow and Lawrence O’Donnell like they were rock stars?

After two years of hosting the network’s annual fan event in dark blue New York City, MS Now (formerly MSNBC) got wind that something was happening in Texas. The state, which hasn’t elected a Democrat to the US Senate in 37 years, might do so next month, when 37-year-old James Talarico, Texas state representative, goes up against the Republican nominee, Ken Paxton, a well-known but controversial figure who ousted incumbent John Cornyn in the party’s primary with Donald Trump’s backing.

“We wanted to be bigger and bolder. We wanted to go to a story that really matters (and this is one of the most important stories of the season), and we wanted to keep growing our live events business,” Marcus Mabry, senior vice-president of content strategy for MS Now, said in an interview. And, he noted, “everything is bigger in Texas”.

While MS Now has a relative monopoly on older liberal Americans who still watch linear television, the network sees potential outside of its traditional coastal strongholds – much like the national Democratic party. Several MS Now hosts hinted at that growth opportunity in their on-stage remarks throughout the day’s programming.

Rachel Maddow hosts a discussion at MS Now’s annual live fan in Texas on 26 September 2026. Photograph: Amy Mikler Kenyon/Amy Mikler Kenon/MS NOW © Versant Media.

“I will say, in the state of Texas, you might have a lot of neighbors that don’t vote like you, but it doesn’t mean they can’t tomorrow,” Stephanie Ruhle, an MS Now host, told the crowd. “I met so many people today whose eyes were filled with tears, and they said: ‘I’m the sole blue dot in Texas.’ How great that you are outstanding. How great that you are a special voice.”

Or, as Mabry put it: “I think right now the opportunity for any journalism in the country is to stop speaking red and blue, and to start speaking to people as individuals.”

In a holding room before his on-stage interview with Stacey Abrams, a former Georgia state representative, Chris Hayes, an MS Now host, said viewers seem to be more “locked into the news” lately after a period of post-election malaise (and softer television ratings) in late 2024 and early 2025, particularly now that Democrats face good odds in next month’s midterm elections. “There are thousands and thousands of people here – in the middle of Texas,” he said of the event.

Comparing the vibes with the months after Trump took office, “it feels like another world. … We’ve had the most intense stress test in the American constitutional republic in my lifetime, and I don’t think anything is determined yet, but it certainly feels better than a year and a half ago.”

The network is feeling that surge of interest. So far this year, MS Now’s primetime lineup is averaging 1.3 million viewers, up 11% from 2025. The network has seen an even bigger increase among viewers aged 25 to 54, the demographic most prized by advertisers.

Chris Hayes smiles with fans at MS Now’s live fan event in Texas on 26 September 2026. Photograph: MS Now

The event – Together In Texas: We the People 2026 – also served as something of an in-person illustration of the network’s first major direct-to-consumer offering, a membership plan – for $7.99 per month or $79.99 annually – that gives subscribers access to two daily Q&As with top hosts and reporters, a moderated discussion community for members, exclusive content, a curated daily briefing and even a collection of guided meditations. (Those in the Founders tier of the membership program had access to a special lounge at the event space.)

“We’re still telling the audience what they need to know, but we’re also asking them, ‘What do you want to know, and how can we actually have a relationship where we actually are more than just delivering news to you as the voice of god,’ which fewer and fewer audience actually wants,” Mabry said. “I hope our business is learning that, because that’s the only way we survive. And we have to survive – it’s important for democracy.”

With MS Now leaning into direct-to-customer products, fan service was the name of the game at the event. At one point, Rebecca Kutler, the network president, happily agreed to photograph several attendees who wanted to take photos with Laura Barrón-López, MS Now White House correspondent, after a panel on the network’s expulsion from the building – seemingly without realizing who their amateur photographer was. “I’ll do any job!” Kutler told the Guardian.

Ruhle served as the event’s unofficial “cheerleader”, as one attendee said, hyping up the crowd and taking photos with fans.

“Those are the people that we work for,” she said in an interview. “When you talk about the media being disconnected from the people, we are no longer – or we shouldn’t be – in the presentation business. No longer should we be sitting in newsrooms deciding here’s what we’re going to make or here’s how it has to look.”

Stephanie Ruhle in the crowd at MS Now Together in Texas. Photograph: Amy Mikler/MS Now

“This isn’t a political rally,” Ruhle said of the event. “This is what America is … These people make our shows better. Why wouldn’t you want to be with them?”

Ahead of the event, several attendees said it was a no-brainer for MS Now to host the event in Texas – and said they were committed to watching the network as a purveyor of both reliable information and a much-needed sense of optimism.

Ronnie Thomas, a 47-year-old Dallas resident who works in automotive sales, said he was “very happy” to be able to see Maddow and his other favorite hosts with only a short drive.

“I like getting more of the truth,” his wife Rachael, also 47, said. “And it feels like they are closer to what the true state of things are compared to some of the things we see on other stations.”

Former Republican Leslie Lesher, 73, and her spouse Joni Dennis, 68, said they watch MS Now “almost all day” every day.

“These are our favorite people,” Lesher said. “I know they have knowledge that we don’t have. I always feel hope when I watch them.”

Ruhle shared her sentiments. “A lot of people are scared about the state of the world,” she said. “They’re scared of the state of democracy. And I just think we’re all in this together.”