Ronan Farrow to join MSNBC as host

By Patrick Kevin Day

Oct. 16, 2013 1:12 PM PT

Ronan Farrow, the outspoken journalist, human rights lawyer and the son of Mia Farrow and Frank Sinatra (possibly), is joining MSNBC to host a new show.

The program, currently still in development, doesn’t have a name but is expected to launch in early 2014.

In a statement, Farrow, who is an active Twitter user. described the program as “a new generation of news show for a new, more engaged generation of viewers.”

PHOTOS: Hollywood Backlot moments

He continued, “It’s a show about why the news matters to you -- and what you can do to be a part of the story. I’m excited to shake up people’s expectations for cable news. And to get a ton of Twitter followers.”

Prior to his MSNBC contract, Farrow worked for the Obama State Department, founding the Office of Global Youth Issues and working as a diplomat focused on conflict in Afghanistan and Pakistan. He’s also written about human rights and foreign policy for the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal and the Los Angeles Times.

In a statement, MSNBC President Phil Griffin said, “Ronan has packed more experience into his 25 years of life than most people have in a lifetime.”

PHOTOS: Celebrities by The Times

That’s right, Farrow is just 25 years old and has a good sense of humor about his celebrity ancestry.

When Farrow’s mother told Vanity Fair that her son’s father was Frank Sinatra and not Woody Allen, with whom she was in a relationship with at the time of his birth, Ronan Farrow tweeted, “Listen, we’re all *possibly* Frank Sinatra’s son.”

Farrow has also gotten in digs at Allen, who left his mother to marry his adopted sister, Soon-Yi Previn. Last year, Farrow tweeted, “Happy father’s day -- or as they call it in my family, happy brother-in-law’s day.”

In his new role, Farrow is expected to host his MSNBC show and also contribute to NBC News coverage.

ALSO:

AMC greenlights new unscripted series ‘King of Arms’

Rebel Wilson reveals taboo jokes in a chicken suit on ‘Conan’

How ‘The Walking Dead’s’ ratings have redefined the new TV season