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 Known for its conservative voices, the 21st Century Fox unit
is looking to maintain its perch atop the U.S. cable news
landscape. Fox News is coming off its most-watched year in 2016,
where it finished ahead of every other U.S. cable channel for
the first time in its 20-year history.
“Tucker Carlson Tonight” will move to 9 p.m. beginning Jan. 9,
with his 7 p.m. time slot being filled temporarily by Martha
MacCallum a week later, who will host a show chronicling
President-elect Donald Trump’s first 100 days in office.
Media buyers see these moves as natural fits for Fox News, after
a turbulent 2016 that saw the ouster of founding chairman Roger
Ailes. Kelly was one of several employees who last year accused
Ailes of sexual harassment. Ailes denied the charges but left
the network.
Having frequently guest-hosted for the network’s prime-time
shows, Carlson and MacCallum are both familiar faces to Fox News
viewers.
“I think it’s a smart move. Both have a following and Tucker in
particular is getting a lot of good buzz,” said Barry Lowenthal,
president of The Media Kitchen.
While Kelly was a huge star for Fox News, the channel has built
up a large and loyal following among conservative viewers that
should only increase after Trump takes office. “Going into a
conservative Trump administration, they will continue to be able
to run with that. They’re going to be the mouthpiece,” said
Scott Singer, managing director for DDG.
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Replacing Greta Van Susteren, Carlson has scored consistently strong
ratings since the Nov. 14 premiere of “Tucker Carlson Tonight.” The
show has averaged 2.8 million viewers and finished second, ahead of
Megyn Kelly, among adults aged 25-54 in December, the demographic
most attractive to advertisers who buy time on news programs.
Van Susteren will join Kelly at NBC News, anchoring a 6 p.m. weekday
show on its cable news channel MSNBC beginning Jan. 9, the company
announced on Thursday.
Carlson will now air after "The O'Reilly Factor," the top-rated
cable news program, giving Fox News a pro-Trump lineup with Bill
O'Reilly and Sean Hannity, both of whom were frequent supporters.
Kelly will host a daytime and Sunday evening news show for NBC News,
the Comcast unit announced on Tuesday. Her Fox show, “The Kelly
File,” had ranked second in cable news among total viewers and
adults 25-54 for 2016.
(Reporting by Tim Baysinger; Editing by Bill Trott and Tom Brown)
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