Angelo Carusone on Fox's new prime-time lineup: “The network is going back out to sea by leaning in on their most toxic personalities”

Written by Media Matters Staff

Published

Media Matters President Angelo Carusone released the following statement about Fox News’ new prime-time lineup, which features host Jesse Watters' show taking the 8 p.m. ET time slot formerly held by Tucker Carlson and Greg Gutfeld moving into prime time. The new lineup was announced ratings falling fast following Carlson’s departure from the network.

After Fox News fired Tucker Carlson, Lachlan Murdoch said there would be ‘no change’ in the network’s programming strategy. Today, Fox is making good on that promise.

Crowning odious Jesse Watters as the new face of Fox News is a reflection of Fox’s dogged commitment to bigotry and deceit as well as an indication of their desperation to regain audience share. It won’t work, though. Fox’s audience abandoned the network post-Tucker, and those viewers never returned. Jesse Watters’ buffoonish segments of bigotry and culture war vitriol won’t fix that problem for Fox; he’s a liability and a ticking time bomb.

Dominion exposed Fox News for the partisan propaganda operation that it is. Instead of trying to adjust and attempt to establish a beachhead of credibility, the network is going back out to sea by leaning in on their most toxic personalities — like Greg Gutfeld and Jesse Watters. The network is transparently appealing to the fringes here.

Advertisers and cable providers beware: Things at Fox News are about to get a whole lot worse.

Fox Corp. signaled this “new” direction when it leaned in on featuring some of its most dishonest and extreme figures — Jesse Watters, Sean Hannity, Laura Ingraham, and Greg Gutfeld, among others — in its May presentation to media buyers.

For more on Jesse Watters’ history of extremism and why advertisers should beware, see here.

For more on Greg Gutfeld's toxic and extreme commentary which is now moving to prime time, see here.

While Fox News is trying to grab even more money from consumers by renegotiating deals with major cable providers, consumers can take a stand and refuse to continue to line Fox’s pockets. Visit NoFoxFee.com to see how MMFA is encouraging consumers to tell their providers not to let Fox News raise their bills.