MSNBC's rebrand reportedly includes video ads in which Black actors were hired to complement the network's predominantly white prime-time talent.

As the left-leaning cable channel prepares to shed the "NBC" in its name and relaunch as "MS NOW" on Saturday, new owner Versant rolled out a $20 million marketing blitz meant to reassure its aging, liberal audience and "reclaim patriotism," according to The New York Times.

But a closer look at the rollout suggests something else: Scripted diversity on camera masking a largely white, highly paid prime-time lineup.

A civil-rights-themed launch ad reviewed by The Washington Free Beacon features Rachel Maddow reading the preamble to the Constitution over archival footage of protests and Martin Luther King Jr.

Intercut with those images are lingering shots of Black everyday Americans gazing into the distance, hugging children, or sipping coffee in a diner.

Those people actually are working actors Alex Mason, Shekaya Sky McCarthy, and Marcel Noel with résumés that include national commercials for KFC, Target, and Allstate.

The actors are not identified as performers, giving the impression they are real viewers moved by MS NOW's supposed commitment to "a more perfect union."

Another spot swaps in the late Maya Angelou's poetry over similar images, again relying heavily on the same Black actors.

The ads' racial imagery stands in stark contrast to MS NOW's star roster.

As the Free Beacon noted Tuesday, nearly every anchor showcased in the spots — Maddow, Lawrence O'Donnell, Joe Scarborough, Mika Brzezinski, Jen Psaki, Chris Hayes, Stephanie Ruhle, Ari Melber and Nicolle Wallace — is white.

The only Black co-host in the campaign, Michael Steele, flashes on screen for under a second.

Joy Reid, the network's most controversial Black host, was pushed out of weekday prime time this year after years of racially charged rhetoric.

Thus, Versant is spending millions to project racial justice and inclusion while its weeknight prime-time schedule now has no solo Black anchor.

Yet, MSNBC enjoys one of cable's largest Black audiences — roughly 20%, according to industry estimates — making the casting choices look like corporate box-checking rather than genuine representation.

The Times reported the makeover is driven less by principle than by corporate restructuring. Comcast is spinning off its cable channels into a new company, Versant, and wants to separate the MSNBC brand from NBC News.

CNBC, seen as less politically toxic, gets to keep the "NBC" in its name and logo for now.

MSNBC, by contrast, is forced into the clunky "MS NOW," which stands for "My Source for News, Opinion and the World."

Even liberal media watchers are baffled.

The Hollywood Reporter quoted one editor who said the new name sounds like a random Microsoft app you'd delete to free up hard drive space.

Versant executives insist the "Same Mission. New Name" campaign will keep superfans loyal and attract new viewers, even as MSNBC's ratings have plunged 34% since last year.