CRTV-Blaze Merger: Fighting For Survival?

Mark Levin’s CRTV and Glenn Beck’s The Blaze have merged to form a conservative media and opinion giant that appears poised to compete directly with Fox News’ just-launched streaming service.

“So many people came up and said, ‘You know, you guys just have to get together,’” Beck said on his radio program. “So we took that at heart, and we did that.”

Financial terms of the merger were not disclosed, according to CNBC.

The Blaze’s website, started by Beck in 2010, claims that the newly formed Blaze Media will reach more than 165 million people every month, making it the “largest independent, traditionally conservative multiplatform media company” in the U.S.

Levin, a syndicated radio host and the founder of LevinTV, which grew to become CRTV, will join the Blaze brand name, along with other hosts including Michelle Malkin, “Duck Dynasty” star Phil Robertson, former Fox co-host Eric Bolling and others.

The announcement comes less than a week after Fox launched its $5.99-a-month streaming opinion site, Fox Nation. That subscription service started with a slate of original content featuring some of the television network’s regular contributors and hosts. A monthly pass to the BlazeTV service costs $10, according to its website.

Gaston Mooney, who will be Blaze Media’s co-president, told CNN when asked about Fox Nation that “CRTV and TheBlaze were the two leaders in the [subscription video on demand] space and it’s flattering that more traditional, established networks are moving that direction as well. More content choices and voices for Americans is always a good thing.”

The latest analysis of Comscore data by TheRighting, a media company that aggregates articles from right-wing media outlets, shows TheBlaze’s total unique visitors dipped in October 2018 year-over-year by 21%.