Wednesday, August 21, 2024

Fox News Embraces Democrats


California Governor Gavin Newsom, US Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg and Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro are all scheduled to stop by Fox’s DNC set in Chicago for interviews. They’re part of a growing group of Democrats appearing on the news network popular with conservatives in the run-up to the presidential election between former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris.

Bloomberg reports Fox having Democrats on air helps make the network appear more balanced and fair, while juicing ratings. For Democrats, going on Fox gives them the opportunity to appear on the most-watched news channel and possibly win over some voters who haven’t made up their minds about who they’ll support in November.

“A lot of them are watching Fox News and are reachable, but they’re not going to be reached unless we are clearly and compellingly rebutting Trump talking points,” says Representative Jake Auchincloss, a Massachusetts Democrat who’s been appearing on Fox since he was elected in 2020.

Ratings Leader

Fox News is the highest-rated cable news network both in daytime and prime-time viewership. The channel had an average daily audience of 1.33 million viewers from January to Aug. 11, according to Nielsen, Fox’s more politically liberal or middle-of-the road rivals, MSNBC and CNN, each had fewer than 1 million daily viewers during the same period.

The network said the number of prominent Democrats, excluding strategists, who appeared on its channel or digital unit increased 45% from June to August over the same period last year. The list includes some frequent targets of Fox News’ prime-time commentators, from Vermont’s progressive Senator Bernie Sanders to Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.

Jessica Loker, vice president of politics at the network and senior executive producer for Fox News Sunday, says more Democrats are asking to appear on Fox as they look to appeal to a broader demographic of voters, especially in key battleground states. “You’ve got an election where it’s going to be decided by a very small group of people in just a handful of states,” she says.

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