The Nation’s Washington editor Christopher L. Hayes will join MSNBC as host of a new weekend morning show, MSNBC announced today. The new program will debut September 17, 2011 and air 7 a.m. to 9 a.m. on Saturday and 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. on Sunday. Further details about the program will be announced in the coming weeks. Hayes will remain at The Nation as its editor-at-large.

A regular contributor and frequent guest-host of MSNBC’s The Rachel Maddow Show and The Last Word with Lawrence O’Donnell, Hayes joined The Nation as a contributing writer in 2006, and quickly became The Nation’s Washington editor in November 2007 at the age of 28.

“When I hired Chris some thought it was a gamble, bringing on a 28-year-old to run the DC bureau. I knew then what so many have come to recognize—he was a star: an intellectual omnivore, a person of integrity, independent mind, with an unwavering commitment to journalistic excellence,” said The Nation‘s editor and publisher, Katrina vanden Heuvel.

Hayes has written on a range of issues, including US politics, economic policy, conservatives and the American right as well as US foreign policy. He is at work on a book examining the crisis of authority in American life—based on his widely acclaimed February 1, 2010, article in The Nation, ”System Failure.” Hayes’s many contributions also included hosting the popular weekly podcast series The Breakdown, at TheNation.com.

“It’s been the absolute highlight of my career as a writer to be Washington editor of The Nation. I’m forever grateful that Katrina took the chance she did in hiring me,” said Hayes. “She’s the best boss I’ve ever had, even if my insistence on calling her ‘boss’ makes her squirm. I’m thrilled to transition to editor-at-large and am already plotting some long-form writing for the magazine in the future.”

The Nation remains committed to independent and fearless journalism about the nation’s politics, as epitomized by the work of its DC bureau and team of journalists and writers: editor Katrina vanden Heuvel, veteran national affairs correspondent William Greider, DC reporter George Zornick, DC correspondent John Nichols, national security correspondent Jeremy Scahill, contributing editor Robert Dreyfuss and contributing writers Ari Berman and Ben Adler. Look for other changes and additions in the next few months as we gear up for coverage of the 2012 elections in print and online at TheNation.com”.

Below are some of the highlights from Hayes’s work to date for The Nation.

“Hip Heterodoxy,” June 11, 2007

“Never Say You’re Sorry,” February 16, 2009

“Pulp Nonfiction,” April 20, 2009

“Notes on Change,” May 11, 2009

“The Secret Government,” September 14, 2009

“System Failure,” February 1, 2010

“Deficits of Mass Destruction,” August 2/9, 2010

“Obama’s Forgotten Base,” October 11, 2010

“The Breakdown: How Will Citizens United Shape Our Democracy?” October 21, 2010

“Postcard From Palestine,” November 1, 2010

“Why Washington Doesn’t Care About Jobs,” March 21, 2011

“After Osama bin Laden’s Death, an End to ‘Bad Guys’,” May 23, 2011