Now, more than a year after launching the streaming product, Fox National executives are trying to broaden the audience. They’re testing additional genres — from outdoor activities to music — with the goal of attracting more subscribers to the service, called Fox Nation.
Bloomberg reports John Finley, the Fox News executive who runs the subscription service, said it has seen success in programming that has little to do with politics — so long as it has “the same sort of Fox values appealing to Middle America.”
This spring, for the first time, Fox Nation will feature a month of shows dedicated to outdoor sports, with Fox talent and other celebrities going hunting and fishing. Fox Nation also plans to add more true-crime shows, including a new one this month hosted by Nancy Grace.
Fox Nation currently has 200,000 to 300,000 subscribers, according to estimates from research firm Parks Associates. (Compare that with the more than 3 million viewers that Hannity draws.) But the service is an opportunity to both find new customers and prepare for the future of TV.
Fox Nation, which costs $5.99 a month, is the only direct-to-consumer subscription video service owned by Fox Corp., which sold much of its entertainment assets to Walt Disney Co. last year. Finley declined to disclose how many subscribers Fox Nation has, but said he was happy with its growth so far.
In the midst of a heated presidential campaign, Fox Nation still caters to Fox News superfans. The app offers its subscribers a limited live feed of the cable channel, and this month, former CBS News correspondent Lara Logan debuted a new show in which she investigates immigration on the U.S. border with Mexico — a key issue for Fox News viewers. But Finley said that some of the most popular shows on Fox Nation during its first year didn’t focus on political subjects.The successes include a crime show hosted by Mark Fuhrman, a former Los Angeles police detective who became famous during the O.J. Simpson trial; a history show, “What Made America Great,” in which “Fox & Friends” co-host Brian Kilmeade visits places like the Alamo, Fort McHenry and Mount Rushmore; and a travel show where Abby Hornacek tours national parks.
Country music has also found a home on the service. Over the holidays, Fox Nation aired an old Christmas special with Johnny Cash. Next month, country music star John Rich will debut a show on Fox Nation, where guests will “delve into their journey to achieving the American dream.”
“We’re trying new and different things,” Finley said. “I think I can widen the net and appeal to the traditional Fox News audience and find new viewers at the same time.”
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