Fox News Network: They're Crazy Like a ...

[FormerMod-a1]

A spot to discuss the business of Fox News. Please note; this is not the place to discuss the shows of Fox. Show discussion should take place in individual show forums.

[rallymantis]

Very sad news about Alan Colmes.  Always a great smile & sense of humor, even in the minority.

Best moment: April Fool's Day 2009.  He showed up at the top of the hour on a renamed "Hannity" ("Colmes"), offering up the Anti-American Panel of "Bill Ayers, Sean Penn, and anybody French!"

RIP.

[Just Here]

From Gabriel Sherman -- Fox News Is Dropping Its ‘Fair & Balanced’ Slogan (NYMag.com):

Quote

As Fox News moves further into the post–Roger Ailes era, the network is shedding one of its most iconic elements. According to network executives, Fox News has abandoned the marketing slogan “Fair & Balanced.” The decision was made last August after Ailes’s ouster by Fox News co-president Jack Abernethy, because the phrase had “been mocked,” one insider said. Another executive explained that the tagline was “too closely associated with Roger.” Fox executives have been instructed by management to market the network by its other tagline: “Most Watched. Most Trusted.”

[Just Here]

From CNN's Brian Stelter and Hadas Gold:  Laura Ingraham set to take over Fox News' 10 p.m. slot.

A few bullet points worth mentioning:

• It's not directly mentioned in the article, but rumors of Ingraham landing something with FOX News have been swirling for the past month or so.
• Sean Hannity, who is currently at 10pm, is expected to move up to 9pm, which puts him against Rachel Maddow on MSNBC and the last hour of Anderson Cooper on CNN.
• Also noted in the article is that The Five is moving back to its original 5pm (Eastern) timeslot.

Quote

Laura Ingraham, the radio host and Fox News commentator, is about to become a prime time host on the conservative cable network.

Ingraham is expected to take over the 10 p.m. hour on Fox News, according to people who spoke on condition of anonymity.

While there may be one or two final details to negotiate, Ingraham has been telling friends that the deal is essentially done, the sources said.

Her new show will be part of a broader change to the network's top-rated prime time lineup. Sean Hannity's show, currently at 10 p.m., will move one hour earlier to 9 p.m., multiple sources confirmed.

And "The Five," a talk show originally named for its 5 p.m. time slot, will shift from 9 p.m. back to its namesake hour.

 

Also, Harvey Levin's hour-long special series, Objectified, premieres this Sunday, September 17th, at 8pm (Deadline).

Quote

Fox News Channel will premiere Objectified, a new series hosted by TMZ’s Harvey Levin, on Sunday, September 17 at 8 pm ET. Kicking off the season debut, the entertainment program will spotlight Judge Judy Sheindlin, sharing her most prized possessions in her Greenwich, Connecticut home.

Each week, Levin will present an interview with a newsmaker or celebrity who will tell their life story through objects they have chosen to keep over the years. The objects become jumping points in understanding how certain experiences shaped them into who they are today.

The 10 episode series will continue in the 8 pm slot on Sundays, with upcoming shows will featuring Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu; former California governor and Hollywood star Arnold Schwarzenegger; businesswoman and television personality Martha Stewart; entertainment entrepreneur and actor Tyler Perry; and Dallas Mavericks owner and investor Mark Cuban, among others.

Edited September 12, 2017 by Just Here
auto-formatting woes

[Just Here]

I saw this on Tuesday and didn't realize that it was a brand new thing for Fox & Friends.  F&F have a new indoor-but-outdoor set that is sponsored by "Bob Evans Farms" (BEF),* which features a kitchen area with the BEF logo and a display of some BEF products.

(Diamond & Silk were even among the honored guests!)

 

I was a bit surprised to see the "Bob Evans Farms" sponsorship, given all the recent public pressure on FoxNews advertisers, though that's been mostly focused on the primetime personalities' shows (Hannity, Tucker, Ingraham).  BEF not only sells sausage and other foods (ready to heat mashed potatoes is a big, big seller) under the "Bob Evans" brand, but also provides sausage for various supermarkets' private labels, such as Giant Eagle and Meijer, as revealed by a recent food recall, who could put a lot more pressure on BEF than a public advertising boycott campaign by private individuals.  Especially, Giant Eagle, given last weekend's tragic massacre:  The company was founded in Pittsburgh by Jewish families and is still headquartered in that city.

 

*"Bob Evans Farms" recently spun off its restaurant division, "Bob Evans Restaurants" (BER) back in 2017.  Both corporations are owned by private equity firms.  (Wikipedia)

 

Tangent:  Could that kitchen area be any more generic?  I mean it's so white.  And, it's not particularly farm-ish.  Where's the giant cast iron sink (ideally with a drainboard section)?  Also, the classic position for a kitchen sink is in front of a window.  And, having that fake window in the corner makes no good sense.

 

(The above still is from a NewscastStudio blog post about the set and F&F episode.)

[Just Here]

Shepard Smith is out.

Press Release:

Quote

NEW YORK – October 11, 2019 — FOX NEWS Channel’s (FNC) Shepard Smith will step down from his role as Chief News Anchor and Managing Editor of the network’s breaking news unit and Anchor of Shepard Smith Reporting, announced Jay Wallace, President & Executive Editor of FOX News Media. This afternoon’s edition of Shepard Smith Reporting was Mr. Smith’s final show, during which he addressed his decision. A series of rotating anchors will host the 3PM/ET time slot until a new dayside news program is announced.

[Ashforth]

Shep Smith seems to be an honest and principled reporter. His departure from FOX is, imo, a huge loss for FOX viewers who are seeking real information. I wish him well.

Edited October 11, 2019 by Ashforth

[Just Here]

From the linked article:
 

Quote

But [Smith] had had enough. In September, according to a well-placed source, he went to Fox News management and asked to be let out of his long-term contract. Tensions with the opinion shows were the breaking point.

Executives at the network leaned on him to stay, but to no avail. On Friday afternoon he announced his departure on the air, then exited the building immediately, clearly emotional about saying goodbye to his television home of twenty years.

"Our leader walked," a Fox correspondent said on condition of anonymity. "This place is devoid of clear leadership."

Quote

But "it was clear he wasn't happy, on air and off air," one of the staffers said after Friday's stunning resignation announcement.

Two other staffers also said he'd indicated he "wanted to leave" -- meaning that he was not forced out by management, as some outsiders immediately speculated on social media.

"I think it probably just got to be too much," one of Smith's allies inside Fox News headquarters said.

Some ratings info:

Quote

"Shepard Smith Reporting" usually outrated CNN and MSNBC in its time slot, because Fox News as a whole has a big base audience, but his hour was the lowest-rated in Fox's daytime lineup.

Smith used to have a much-sought-after evening time slot, at 7 p.m., leading in to "The O'Reilly Factor." In 2013, he was moved to 3 p.m. and given a new title, managing editor of Fox's breaking news division.

[rcc]

I never watch Fox News except for Shep's news show. For years. He has finally left that network and wherever he lands I will watch. He is a great news broadcaster and Fox News is the loser here.

[shok]

On 10/12/2019 at 11:49 AM, rcc said:

I never watch Fox News except for Shep's news show. For years. He has finally left that network and wherever he lands I will watch. He is a great news broadcaster and Fox News is the loser here.

The people who watch Fox News are the losers. Shep was the only one on that channel that reported the news.

[Ashforth]

9 hours ago, shok said:

The people who watch Fox News are the losers. Shep was the only one on that channel that reported the news.

Now Chris Wallace is in the crosshairs because he dares to cite facts and challenge liars.

[Just Here]

White House correspondent Ed Henry has been fired following an investigation concerning "willful sexual misconduct in the workplace."  Henry had served as the President of the WHCA for 2012-2013.

Here is CNN's article on the firing.

[Just Here]

From The New Yorker: The Secret History of Kimberly Guilfoyle’s Departure from Fox

Somehow The New Yorker got a hold of a former assistant's never-filed legal complaint -- because everything was settled out of court -- against Guilfoyle.  Some of this was previously known, but, ugh, this article has a lot more (graphic) detail.

 

Quote

The woman was hired in 2015, just out of college, to work as an assistant for Guilfoyle and another former Fox host, Eric Bolling. According to a dozen well-informed sources familiar with her complaints, the assistant alleged that Guilfoyle, her direct supervisor, subjected her frequently to degrading, abusive, and sexually inappropriate behavior; among other things, she said that she was frequently required to work at Guilfoyle’s New York apartment while the Fox host displayed herself naked, and was shown photographs of the genitalia of men with whom Guilfoyle had had sexual relations. The draft complaint also alleged that Guilfoyle spoke incessantly and luridly about her sex life, and on one occasion demanded a massage of her bare thighs; other times, she said, Guilfoyle told her to submit to a Fox employee’s demands for sexual favors, encouraged her to sleep with wealthy and powerful men, asked her to critique her naked body, demanded that she share a room with her on business trips, required her to sleep over at her apartment, and exposed herself to her, making her feel deeply uncomfortable.

 

Quote

The New Yorker, however, was able to independently confirm several of the assistant’s accusations. The allegation that she was required to work at Guilfoyle’s apartment while Guilfoyle was barely clothed or naked was substantiated by several of the assistant’s confidants, including an eyewitness, who recalls being surprised by the sight. “It was provocative in a way that made you want to get away from this person,” the eyewitness told me.

One current and one former Fox employee confirmed the assistant’s allegation that Guilfoyle had often shared lewd images, noting that she had shown photographs of male genitalia to them, too—some of romantic partners, others of fans. Another former employee described Guilfoyle showing pornographic videos in the office. Guilfoyle’s graphic sexual talk so upset hair-and-makeup artists at Fox that they lodged an internal complaint, triggering an investigation by the company.

 

[bad things are bad]

That is the strangest story. Weird weird weird. 

[Ashforth]

On 10/1/2020 at 6:44 PM, Just Here said:

From The New Yorker: The Secret History of Kimberly Guilfoyle’s Departure from Fox

Somehow The New Yorker got a hold of a former assistant's never-filed legal complaint -- because everything was settled out of court -- against Guilfoyle.  Some of this was previously known, but, ugh, this article has a lot more (graphic) detail.

I think of Guilfoyle as the Gargoyle.

[RealHousewife]

On 10/15/2019 at 7:45 AM, Ashforth said:

Now Chris Wallace is in the crosshairs because he dares to cite facts and challenge liars.

Chris Wallace is probably the most fair person on Fox. 

[catlover79]

On 2/5/2021 at 12:07 AM, RealHousewife said:

Chris Wallace is probably the most fair person on Fox. 

Yes. He's the outlier. Good for Shepard Smith for saying ENOUGH and moving on to CNBC.

 

[DanaK]

Tucker Carlson out in surprise exit. People say they are surprised but it's a matter of timing really since I fully expected it would happen when Rupert Murdoch dies and his kids take over the company

https://variety.com/2023/tv/news/tucker-carlson-fox-news-exit-1235592527/

[Jaded]

It only took close to a billion dollars for it to finally happen.