Media Action Network for Asian Americans (MANAA) issued the following statement on Oct. 22.
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On Oct. 15, NBC Asian America reporters were among the approximately 150 employees let go across NBC News. This was part of a larger round of cuts that impacted dedicated teams covering diverse communities, including NBC BLK, NBC Latino, and NBC OUT.
While the specific editorial teams were dissolved, NBC said the verticals would continue to exist, with content contributed from the broader newsroom. The cuts were linked to a corporate restructuring and a planned spinoff of MSNBC and CNBC into a new entity called Versant.
Media Action Network for Asian Americans — the only organization solely dedicated to monitoring the mass media and advocating balanced, sensitive and positive depictions and coverage of Asian Americans — condemns these layoffs, which are viewed as more than a coincidence, and part of a larger sign of the media industry’s retreat from diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives amidst economic pressure and political backlash to silence the voices of Asian American Pacific Islanders (AAPIs) and other people of color. It is anathema to freedom of speech, press, and expression.
MANAA echoes the sentiments of others like The Asian American Foundation (TAAF) (“heartbroken”) www.taaf.org/news/taaf-statement-on-layoffs-impacting-nbc-asian-america; Asian American Life (“media diversity setback”) www.facebook.com/asianamericanlife/photos/-media-diversity-setback-nbc-news-has-disbanded-its-dedicated-teams-covering-bla/1385141060279152/; noted comic book writer Greg Pak (“This is a kick in the teeth”) https://asamnews.com/2025/10/15/poc-verticals-axed-nbc-journalists-aapi/#:~:text=While%20some%20members%20of%20those,Details%20here; and Stop AAPI Hate (“NBC News is turning its back on people of color — eliminating multiracial news desks amid surging racism and xenophobia.”) www.instagram.com/p/DP7Nmn6Drm5/.
Launched in 2014 as a digital vertical of NBC News, NBC Asian America fills a much-needed void in providing news, features, videos and more that aim to elevate AAPI voices across the U.S. and to delve deeper into stories affecting them, which often go unreported.
NBC Asian America continues to celebrate and uplift AAPI communities in all walks of life and professions such as in its acclaimed series “NBC Asian America Presents: A to Z” (May 1, 2018). Among the many poignant stories, it reported on:
San Francisco Chinatown’s tight supply of affordable housing for immigrant families (July 10, 2018);
A Vietnamese refugee who tells his son of his journey of struggle and resilience to the U.S. as one of the boat people (May 31, 2025);
Indian students who (last year, accounted for 71% of approved beneficiaries) say H-1B visa changes are causing them to rethink studying in the U.S. (Sep. 25, 2025);
The Oct. 16, 2025 death of a South Korean author who opened up about her depression and anxiety in a best-selling novel and sequel that continues to be relevant today (Oct. 17, 2025); and
The anti-Asian hate and violence especially during the COVID-19 pandemic (May 11, 2022). www.nbcnews.com/news/asian-america/nbc-news-racism-virus-returns-special-anti-asian-hate-solutions-rcna28401. A resurgence of these challenges continues today.
“We often think of stories about communities of color as being sidelined, siloed or in their own court,” said Jessica Prois, editorial director of NBC Asian America. “The way that NBC does it, we have the freedom to do a deep dive based on identity and our cultural expertise, but we also break news, get exclusives and scoops.”
According to NBCU Academy, “Over the past decade, the vertical has gained a loyal readership and engaged social media following, with over 50,000 Instagram followers. Some days, its stories boast the largest audience numbers on NBCNews.com.” https://nbcuacademy.com/asian-american-news-pacific-islander/
MANAA believes it’s bad enough that this past February, MSNBC’s critically acclaimed programs “Alex Wagner Tonight” and “The Katie Phang Show” were cancelled.
The integrity of thorough research and reporting in a free society with proper staffing is paramount, along with maintaining and expanding upon a dedicated core audience. Therefore, MANAA strongly urges NBC to restore its NBC Asian America staffing immediately.