At Fox Corporation, the next Colin Cowherd or Jesse Watters isn’t likely to come from the ranks of TV-host wannabes.
Fox’s various operations, which include Fox Sports, Fox News and the Tubi streaming service, rarely act in tandem. In recent months, however, many of them — even the ad-sales department — have begun reaching out to digital-media entrepreneurs, also known as “creators,” in a bid to find new talent that might just be the next hot talker or buzzy showstopper the company needs to keep viewers and business partners coming to its screens.
Fox News, which has minted outspoken personalities like Megyn Kelly or Sean Hannity for years, surprised observers recently by striking a licensing deal with the principals of the popular conservative “Ruthless” podcast, part of a bid to expand its portfolio of opinion programming. Fox Sports seems poised to feature the outspoken commentary of Dave Portnoy, the founder of upstart outlet Barstool Sports. Tubi is actively cultivating independent artists’ video. And Fox Corp.’s recent acquisition of Red Seat Ventures, a production company that specializes in managing many of the business affairs of now-independent media figures including Piers Morgan, Kelly and Tucker Carlson (some are former Fox News stars).
Such maneuvers aren’t just for courting young digerati who might bring new fans to Fox. “We are pretty good at thinking about how content can live across digital and traditional platforms simultaneously,” says Paul Cheesbrough, CEO of Fox’s Tubi Media Group. “So, if one of our Fox talent wants to expand their creative offering beyond the current Fox platforms themselves, how can we kind of lay the rails? How are we going to help them do that? And then for the more organic creators, how can we be the best partner for them as they go on their journey to extend the platforms that they’re on?”
Fox has good reasons to replenish its ranks — and embrace formats toward which younger news and sports aficionados gravitate. Since the company’s controlling Murdoch family divested its studio assets and many of its cable networks in 2019, Fox has focused most intently on live TV — namely sports and news. As a result, the company is much more reliant on its behind-the-desk personnel than some other media contemporaries.
In the streaming era, modern audiences seem to crave talent that is more outspoken, unpolished and raw. NBCUniversal’s Bravo will this week telecast a “culture awards” show led by Bowen Yang and Matt Rogers, the host of the podcast “Las Culturistas.” It’s the first time NBCU is showing the event. MSNBC has tested filling programming slots on weekends and holidays with the video version of a new interview podcast hosted by Nicolle Wallace. More noticeably, ESPN has licensed the popular streaming show led by the outspoken Pat McAfee — and hasn’t always forced him to play by the Disney sports giant’s content rules.
Traditional media companies still have a strong foothold with older consumers. But it’s the younger ones who will help sustain the business and keep sponsorship dollars coming in.
The digital creators are accustomed to having “longer-form conversations” and confiding more in their audiences, says Porter Berry, president of Fox News Digital, who was recently given new oversight over opinion-focused podcasts from Fox News. “The relationships are intimate and personal,” he adds. Fox News recently named conservative influencer Brett Cooper, who is backed in part by Red Seat Ventures, as a new contributor to its TV programs.
Fox Corp. has been trying for months to create close ties with influencers. The company in 2021 acquired Outkick, a sports-focused site led by entrepreneur and online personality Clay Travis. At the time of the purchase, Fox CEO Lachlan Murdoch described Travis as a leader “in sports news, and more critically, sports opinion.” More recently, its ad-sales division purchased a stake in Lighthouse, a production studio for creators that is part of the portfolio of Whalar Group, an independent company that develops influencers and other content personalities.
One goal is to find authentic ways of working with digital talent that won’t force them into typical media models, says Stephano Kim, chief strategy and operations officer of Fox Advertising, during an interview. There’s no reason to “try to jam it into a traditional framework,” he says. Ultimately, you take away or even destroy what made you think it was special.”
Some of Fox’s work at Tubi may shine a light on the company’s ultimate direction. The streamer in June unveiled a plan to showcase video work from influencers including Mythical Entertainment, the production studio founded by Rhett McLaughlin and Link Neal, and Dan and Riya, a Canadian YouTube duo known for the series “Beverly Valley High.” The streamer also launched “Stubios,” an outlet for creator-based content.
Key to this venture and many others is not removing these up-and-comers from the environments in which they already thrive, says Cheesbrough. “We don’t see us partnering with creators out of TikTok or out of YouTube, and them leaving that behind. Instead, we are designing ways for them to co-exist within both ecosystems,” the executive says. But Fox can potentially expose their content to a more established group of advertisers, he says, or to bigger and different audiences.
Fox is likely to help hosts and journalists already under its umbrella to set up new digital content, and to find ways to help lesser-known personalities get exposure, part of a bid to “meet the audience where they are,” says Berry, nodding to the habits of younger consumers. “There is no question that we are going to find a new audience,” he says, “and to serve the audience that’s been with us forever.”