Fox News is facing new competition for conservative viewers from rivals on the right amid a clash with President Trump as he leaves the White House. reports The Hill.
The challenges are unlikely to knock Fox News from its perch as the cable news ratings giant. Fox has spent billions investing in its around-the-clock news division and its primetime lineup draws millions of viewers every night.
But fledgling conservative outlets such as Newsmax and One America News see an opportunity to challenge Fox by providing unabashed pro-Trump news and commentary.
Fox is also experiencing pressure from more established rivals CNN and MSNBC, which have both seen their ratings rise with a Democratic administration about to be sworn in.
In the past, Fox has done well in the ratings when Democrats have been in power, but its executives have signaled they are taking the rivals seriously.
“We don’t take lightly the potential for competition, whether it’s the existing sort of classic MSNBC or CNN, or the sort of emerging ones like Newsmax and OAN,” Fox Corp. CFO Steve Tomsic said at a recent investors conference.
But Tomsic argued that Fox’s upstart rivals have an extremely steep climb ahead.
Fox News had to “burn” $1 billion to make its 24-7 news operation profitable and entrenched, he argued, adding that the network has managed to keep its loyal base of viewers despite high-profile turnover among some of its most well-known personalities in recent years.
“We think we've got a business that has stood the test of time, and every time there's been skepticism about what the future looks like, we’ve pierced through and hit another high,” Tomsic said. “So we feel super confident about Fox News being able to compete in any environment going forward.”
It remains to be seen whether the upstarts will have a lasting impact, but it’s clear that they’ve seen the post-election weeks as a real opportunity — in part because of the president’s actions.
No comments:
Post a Comment