FOX News All Shook Up | Eastern North Carolina Now

Interesting shake-ups during daytime hours can be expected as well

    For the first time in more than a decade, FOX News is totally shaking up its prime time lineup, except Bill O'Reilly, whose show will remain at 8:00 pm. Fox News, by virtue of its long standing as the top rated Cable News Network, has done very little shifting of their top rated prime time news and editorial time slots for that last decade. Everything worked well enough for so long, so why fix what is not broken ... Right? That staid scheduling practice has now abruptly come to an end.

    FOX News, managed deftly by the legendary Roger Ailes, has elected to be proactive in its realignment of its time slots, which portends as their design to remain the highest rated, and by polling results, the most trusted cable news network in North America.

    The prime time shake up, beginning with its 7:00 pm "FOX Report", currently hosted by Shepard Smith. Shepard will be giving up that prime slot, but keeping his 3:00 pm "Studio B" show, which will be expanded and thereby changing its name to "Shepard Smith Reporting". Shepard will also be assuming the duties as FOX News's Breaking News Editor, which is being sold as a promotion by News Manager Ailes. The 7:00 "FOX Report" time slot will be taken over by Greta Van Susteren's "On the Record" show, which did occupy the 10:00 pm slot.

    The 8:00 pm time slot will remain Bill O'Reilly's "No Spin Zone", which has long remained the highest rated program in all of Cable News.

    The most remarkable news in this whole shake-up scenario is Sean Hannity moving from his long occupied 9:00 pm time slot to the 10:00 pm time slot, with former daytime rising star Megyn Kelly taking over Sean's highly rated spot; to a large extent made more popular for the immutable fact that Sean followed the hugely rated Bill O'Reilly. Mrs. Kelly's show will be "The Kelly Files". For those that do not know Megyn, she is relatively young, attractive, centered, extremely bright, and as a trained lawyer with an indomitable spirit, she can hold her own with anyone.

    As mentioned, Sean Hannity will take over for Greta Van Susteren, and will quite possibly bring more viewers to that time slot, although, he may well not have as many viewers as his former very highly rated 9:00 pm time slot had. It may appear that Sean is "taking one for the team", but I very much doubt if he is taking a pay cut; in fact, the opposite is probably true. Plus, it is a good bet that Sean Hannity will do well wherever he lights.

    Outside of Shepard Smith's new studio digs and promotion, the biggest new daytime lineup change is scheduled to be former "Fox and Friends" long time fixture, Gretchen Carlson, getting her new show, "The Real Story With Gretchen Carlson", which will air at 2:00 pm. Gretchen is a former Miss America, with a strong concentration on smart rather than outrageous beauty, although, she is a rather pleasant visage, even so early in the morning ... especially so early in the morning.

    Replacing Gretchen's spot on "Fox and Friends", which begins at 6:00 am, will be Elisabeth Hasselbeck, who recently left ABC's "The View" for the FOX News promotion of sorts. Mrs. Hasselbeck is the wife of former NFL Quarterback Matt Hasselbeck, and was well known as the token "Conservative" on the 5 member dais of the women of "The View". Even while Elisabeth was the "Conservative" anchor on "The View" dais, it was routinely discussed that Mrs. Hasselbeck was already "so FOX News".

    Since FOX News is so well watched, we'll try to keep you informed on what changes that will occur since this channel is in such a remarkable, and uncommon state of flux.