Advertisement 1

Bill O’Reilly, Megyn Kelly rejoin Fox via purchase of podcaster

The Red Seat roster also includes Dr. Phil McGraw, Piers Morgan, Vivek Ramaswamy and Bari Weiss

Article content

Fox Corp. agreed to buy online producer Red Seat Ventures, bringing back into the fold former Fox News commentators including Bill O’Reilly and Megyn Kelly.

Advertisement 2
Story continues below
Article content

Red Seat, founded by Chris and Kevin Balfe, will become part of Fox’s Tubi Media Group, according to a statement Monday. Terms of the deal weren’t disclosed.

Article content
Article content

The purchase follows comments last week by Chief Executive Officer Lachlan Murdoch that the company, owner of the Fox broadcast network and Fox News cable channel, will be expanding its direct-to-consumer efforts.

The deal returns to the Murdoch family media empire a number of personalities who helped make Fox News the most-watched news channel on cable TV, including Tucker Carlson. The Red Seat roster also includes Dr. Phil McGraw, Piers Morgan, Vivek Ramaswamy and Bari Weiss.

The Balfes will continue to lead and operate Red Seat, according to the statement. With 17 shows, Red Seat attracted more than 200 million monthly active views in November and is a top 10 podcast network in the US, the companies said.

The company’s program schedule includes a variety of shows including CrimeCon, Love What Matters and Nancy Grace/CrimeOnline.

Separately, Fox on Monday named Chief Operating Officer John Nallen to the added role of president, part of a new long-term employment deal that runs through June 2028. He has been part of the executive team in Murdoch companies since 1995.

Nallen will get targeted annual bonus and equity awards of $4 million and $6.5 million, respectively.

Article content
Comments
You must be logged in to join the discussion or read more comments.
Join the Conversation

Postmedia is committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion. Please keep comments relevant and respectful. Comments may take up to an hour to appear on the site. You will receive an email if there is a reply to your comment, an update to a thread you follow or if a user you follow comments. Visit our Community Guidelines for more information.

Page was generated in 1.5843191146851