Her rocky tenure at NBC — where she clashed with colleagues and drew low ratings — have dimmed the likelihood of a return to broadcast television. Instead, Ms. Kelly has discussed potential jobs in the digital news space, including conversations with podcast production companies, according to the people familiar with her thinking.

Ms. Kelly, the people said, believes she can find a niche as an equal-opportunity skeptic amid a divided news media. She has told friends that she did not feel comfortable at her previous employers. “I felt like the Rachel Maddow of Fox News and the Sean Hannity of NBC,” she has said.

Ms. Kelly is not currently restricted from working for another outlet, and she is still collecting the remainder of her roughly $30 million exit agreement with NBC, according to two people familiar with the terms of her deal. Other people who have spoken with her say they do not expect an imminent career announcement.