CEO Scott Unveils Four Pillars Supporting Fox News

Fox News CEO Suzanne Scott and Fox News host Lawrence Jones

FOX News Media CEO Suzanne Scott told University of South Carolina students last week that the four pillars keeping the company dominant are culture, collaboration, creativity, and embracing change, crediting the same “startup mentality” she has maintained since helping launch the network in 1996.

Speaking in a fireside chat moderated by “FOX & Friends” co-host Lawrence Jones as part of the Baldwin Lecture series, Scott recounted racing to get Fox News Channel on air in just five months after Rupert Murdoch announced the launch date shortly after hiring her as an entry-level programming assistant.

“That five months — long days, seven days a week — launched the network and launched my career,” Scott said. “I’m a results-oriented person, and that’s why I kept getting opportunities and promotions.”

Now in her 30th year with the company, Scott said she still operates as if Fox News is a startup and never takes her position for granted.

“I have four words that are in my head all the time, and they all begin with C: culture, collaboration, creativity, and change,” she told the audience in the College of Information and Communications. “When you bring those four things together, that’s when an organization thrives.”Scott described Fox News as “the happiest place to work,” emphasizing a people-first, family-like environment and the importance of hiring and retaining “the best people at every position.”

One of her most influential mentors was television pioneer Chet Collier, who co-founded Fox News Channel and died in 2007. Scott called her early years working under him “a master class.”

“The greatest lesson he taught me is a very simple philosophy: ‘people watch people,’” Scott said. Collier stressed that audiences connect with personalities they like, trust, and who don’t talk down to them.“

That’s one of my talents — spotting people who can connect through the screen, developing them, and expanding their toolkit,” she added.

The event included a video chronicling Fox News Channel’s evolution from a 1996 cable startup to today’s multi-platform leader. Students peppered Scott and Jones with questions about leadership, the future of journalism, and succeeding in a rapidly changing media landscape.