History of MSNBC: 1996–2007

The following is a history of MSNBC from 1996 to 2007. MSNBC is an American basic cable and satellite news television channel that was created in 1996 by Microsoft and General Electric's NBC unit, which is now the Comcast-owned NBCUniversal.

Microsoft invested $220 million for a 50% share of the cable network, while MSNBC and Microsoft would share the cost of a $200 million newsroom in Redmond, Washington for MSNBC. NBC supplied the channel space that was occupied by the 18-month-old America's Talking network. Its name is a combination of "MSN" and "NBC". MSNBC (similarly to Fox News) was created as an alternative to CNN.

The following are highlights from the network's first 11 years; its history from 2008 to 2015 is separately covered. Mark Harrington was the first president of MSNBC until his death in 1998; the network's first permanent studios in Secaucus, New Jersey, were later named for Harrington.