The serious trend behind MSNBC’s silly new name

Goodbye MSBNC, and hello “MS NOW.”

In an announcement that has triggered widespread befuddlement and mockery, the progressive cable news network is getting rebranded.

The new name isn’t meant to call to mind Microsoft or the honorific “Ms.” Instead, in the style of congressional bill-naming, MS NOW is purportedly an acronym for the following mouthful: “My Source for News, Opinion, and the World.”

Underneath this seemingly silly story, though, are currents of major change — and fear — in the mainstream media.