LEAD STORY
Fox News/CNN/MSNBC Announce Programming Moves
This past Monday the big three cable news networks unveiled programming moves, almost at the same time, that gave an indication as to what their 2022 is set to look like.
Fox News announced that Jesse Watters will be the permanent host of its 7 pm ET slot. The show will be called Jesse Waters Primetime and it will premier on January 24. Waters will still remain as a co-host of the early evening show The Five and Fox News will find a replacement for his weekend show.
CNN announced that it hired former NPR host Audie Cornish who will host a weekly show on CNN Plus and contribute to other CNN Plus programming. She will also host a weekly audio podcast for CNN Audio. In addition to that Cornish, who starts in February, will appear on CNN covering national, political, and breaking news.
MSNBC said that Vice President Kamala Harris’ former senior press spokesperson Symone Sanders will join the network in the spring. She will host a weekend show as well as host a show on its streaming channel The Choice on Peacock.
These moves by the networks reinforce that the status quo shall remain when it comes to programming values. Two networks remain politics heavy, while the other one focuses more on its journalistic foundation.
Fox News continues to embrace its shift to the hard right by elevating Watters. He has slowly gained prominence at the network, first, he was Bill O’Reilly’s sidekick before earning a weekend slot, and then he was elevated to co-hosting The Five. Watters courted controversy late last year when he called on Dr. Anthony Fauci to be taken out in an ambush-style hit. Dr. Fauci called for Watters to be fired immediately.
CNN meanwhile is sticking with its neutral mantra opting to focus more on its journalistic roots as it looks to build out its soon-to-be-launched streaming service CNN Plus. Cornish is a huge get and brings additional big-name recognition to the streaming service as she was a popular and beloved voice at NPR co-hosting its flagship news show All Things Considered.
MSNBC’s programming holes are the largest ones to fill as it lost Brian Williams last year and they are set to lose Rachel Maddow this year. Looking to put her stamp on the network Sanders is the first big-name hire by MSNBC president Rashida Jones. Jones, who was elevated to the role last year, is keen to keep MSNBC’s liberal identity and this move suggests she will lean heavily into its political programming.
(Fox News Media Press Release, CNN Press Room, Politico, CNN Business, The Guardian, Forbes)
QUICK RECAP
Netflix Raises Its Prices Again
A stagnation in subscriber growth in the US and Canadian markets has forced the streaming giant Netflix to raise its monthly prices. The new pricing structure, which takes effect immediately, sees price hikes of $1-$2 depending on the plan. In the U.S. Netflix’s standard plan, which allows for two simultaneous streams, now costs $15.49 per month, up from $13.99. In Canada, the same standard plan now costs C$16.49 up from C$14.99. Netflix says that the price increase, the first since October 2020, is a result of paying for new content as it seeks to maintain its competitive edge in a crowded streaming TV market. (Reuters)
Schefter, Wojnarowski, And Charania Are Entering Free Agency Market
The biggest names in sports journalism are bound to make some serious money as they become free agents sometime in 2022. Adam Schefter who breaks NFL news for ESPN, Adrian Wojnarowski who breaks NBA news for ESPN, and Shams Charania who also breaks NBA news for The Athletic and Stadium are set to listen to offers from their current employers, traditional players like the New York Times, and new entrants to the game like sports betting giants such as Caesars Sportsbook. These reporters command huge followings on social media and as a result, their social currency makes them very valuable to whoever gets to sign them. (Front Office Sports)
CNN Plus Is Not Here To Replace CNN
CNN is busy putting the finishing touches on its soon-to-be-launched streaming platform CNN Plus, which is being designed to bring in additional cash to the organization as the cable network expects additional cable subscriber exodus. Andrew Morse, who oversees CNN Plus, sees the streaming service not only complimenting what CNN does but also providing something totally different. He believes that CNN “is uniquely positioned to build a global direct-to-consumer subscription service that will be an essential part of people’s lives.” To that effect, CNN Plus has been on a hiring binge bringing in diverse talent like political reporters like Chris Wallace and Kasie Hunt, food writer and chef Alison Roman, and actress Eva Longoria. The streaming service will also showcase films and series’, and they anticipate adding an interactive element to it too. (Vanity Fair)
QUICK RECAP
Chandra Zeikel joins ABC News Live as an executive producer. (ABC News Public Relations)
Nuala McGovern moves from BBC World Service to BBC World as a news anchor. (Nuala McGovern/Twitter)
Pete Thamel joins ESPN as a college football writer. (ESPN Press Room)
Jesse Kirsch joins NBC News as a Cleveland-based correspondent. (NBC News PR/Twitter)
León Krauze is moving from Los Angeles to Miami to anchor Univision’s late-night newscast. (Jose Zamora/Twitter)
Former WarnerMedia PR head Keith Cocozza joins CNBC as SVP Communications. (Deadline)
Nabil Karim joins Turner Sports from ESPN as a studio host and reporter. (WarnerMedia Pressroom)
Jonathan Munro has been named interim director of BBC News until Deborah Turness’s start date. (Jake Kanter/Twitter)
Todd Whiting from NBCUniversal dies of COVID-19 complications. (MediaPost)
Breaking news sports reporters are the hot commodity in sports journalism. (CNBC)
DirecTV drops OANN from its lineup. (NextTV)
Fox News is keeping Lara Logan away from its airwaves. (Daily Beast)
Netflix has docuseries’ lined up for golf and tennis. (Awful Announcing)
The NFL rules America’s media diet. (Axios)
Discovery Plus adds NBCUniversal content to its offerings. (The Streamable)
NBC News’ The Today show celebrated its 70th anniversary on Friday. (TVNewser)
Telemundo adds bilingual content on Peacock. (Axios)
Paramount Plus gets the rights to the English Premier League in Central America. (The Streamable)
Disney wins EPL rights in South America. (Front Office Sports)
Turner Sports is interested in adding MLS to its portfolio. (World Soccer Talk)
FuboTV acquires EPL rights in Canada. (The Streamable)
ABC News under fire for how it edited the CDC director’s interview. (Associated Press)
CBS News’ 60 Minutes Plus on Paramount Plus has been canceled. (Variety)
Netflix is set to pass 1 million mobile app downloads in over 60 countries. (MediaPost)
NBC Sports will use iSpot.tv for its ratings as it looks to move away from Nielsen (Los Angeles Times)
Could Norah O’Donnell be on the way out at CBS News? (New York Post)
Sinclair’s Bally Sports is set to launch a national show called The Rally on January 24. (NextTV)
DAZN is close to buying BT Sport in the UK. (Reuters)
CNN Plus announces new shows as well as its daytime lineup. (CNN Press Room)
Judge Jeanine Pirro joins Fox News’ The Five. (TVNewser)
What’s in store for HBO Max in 2022? (Decider)
News networks are shifting COVID-19 benchmarks in their reporting. (Associated Press)
Max McGee joins ESPN as a SportsCenter anchor. (ESPN Press Room)
CBC/Radio Canada announces its Winter Olympics coverage plans. (NewscastStudio)
Jenny Taft is set to leave Fox Sports 1’s Undisputed. (Awful Announcing)
FuboTV has an impressive fourth quarter in 2021. (Front Office Sports)
NFL Network signs Kimmi Chex to a multi-year extension and moves Mike Yam to Los Angeles. (Liam McKeone/Twitter)
BBC News says that it will not be part of the “cancel culture” click. (The Guardian)
NBC Sports, CBS Sports, Fox Sports, and ESPN all score big with 2021 regular-season NFL ratings. (Michael McCarthy/Twitter, ViacomCBS Press Express, Michael Mulvihill/Twitter, ESPN Press Room)
Don’t Look Up is Netflix’s second-biggest movie of all time. (Deadline)
ESPN’s Scott Van Pelt had a heart scare this past week. (New York Post)
Michele Tafoya’s last game with NBC Sports will be the Super Bowl. (NBC Sports Group Press Box)
Former NFL player Marshawn Lynch could be joining Amazon’s Thursday Night NFL package. (New York Post)
Sky News relaunches its early morning news show. (NewscastStudio)
Apple is looking to acquire an MLB package. (New York Post)
Consumers are looking to cut down on their streaming costs. (MediaPost)
Disney’s Bob Chapek to hold monthly meetings with his creative executives. (The Hollywood Reporter)
WarnerMedia and Comcast announce a distribution agreement for CNN Plus on Xfinity. (WarnerMedia Pressroom)
National sports nets are losing cord cutters at a much slower rate. (Sports Business Journal)
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A MarkHenry Media LLC publication - Issue #74 - 2022