Fox names Jesse Watters to interchange Tucker Carlson in primetime reshuffle

Nobody can ever substitute Tucker Carlson so far as his followers are involved, however Fox News Channel has determined which of its personalities will fill his sneakers within the coveted primetime slot.

Jesse Watters, host of “Jesse Watters Primetime,” will shift from 7 p.m. ET to the 8 p.m. ET hour beforehand hosted by Mr. Carlson. Laura Ingraham, who anchors the ten p.m. ET present, will assume the 7 p.m. ET slot.

“Hannity” anchor Sean Hannity will stay within the 9 p.m. ET slot, whereas “Gutfeld!” star Greg Gutfeld will transfer up an hour to 10 p.m. ET.

Newsman Trace Gallagher, host of “Fox News @ Night,” will even see his present air an hour earlier by switching from midnight to 11 p.m. ET.

In different phrases, Fox will transfer up its powerhouse primetime line-up by an hour and shift “The Ingraham Angle” to the kickoff slot, however no new personalities will probably be added in Mr. Carlson’s wake.

“FOX News Channel has been America’s destination for news and analysis for more than 21 years and we are thrilled to debut a new lineup,” mentioned Suzanne Scott, Fox News Media CEO. “The unique perspectives of Laura Ingraham, Jesse Watters, Sean Hannity, and Greg Gutfeld will ensure our viewers have access to unrivaled coverage from our best-in-class team for years to come.”

The reshuffled primetime line-up will debut July 17.

POWERFUL PRIMETIME: Fox News unveils new night lineuphttps://t.co/Q9U9tRposR

— Fox News (@FoxNews) June 26, 2023

Fox News Channel has seen its scores dip amid outrage over the April ouster of Mr. Carlson, who has since launched a day by day social-media program referred to as “Tucker on Twitter,” a part of billionaire Elon Musk’s technique to make Twitter extra of a information platform.

From June 5-11, MSNBC edged Fox in primetime viewership, ending Fox’s 120-week streak on the prime, adopted by CNN in third place amongst cable networks, in response to Nielsen knowledge reported by Forbes.

Even so, Mr. Watters, Mr. Hannity, Mr. Gutfeld and Ms. Ingraham all received their time slots when it comes to complete viewers on Thursday, the newest date for which scores had been out there.

Ms. Ingraham has been challenged for time-slot dominance with MSNBC’s “The Last Word with Lawrence O’Donnell,” however Fox described her program because the “top-rated show in the 10 PM/ET time slot since it launched in 2017.”

“She has hosted a series of highly rated town halls including Red State Trailblazers, Time for Class and Georgia and the Battle for Senate,” mentioned the community. “A former litigator and Supreme Court law clerk for Justice Clarence Thomas, Ingraham joined FNC in 2007 as a contributor, providing political and legal analysis to FNC’s daytime and primetime programming.”

Mr. Watters’ present has dominated the 7 p.m. ET slot because it was launched 18 months in the past, “delibvering the highest-rated 7 PM/ET hour in cable news history,” mentioned Fox.

“In addition to hosting Primetime, Watters is also a co-host of The Five, the 5 PM/ET roundtable discussion program that has been number one in cable news and all of cable for the last seven consecutive quarters,” the community mentioned.

“Gutfeld!” has been the top-rated late-night present for 27 months, beating the printed community packages, together with CBS’ “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert,” ABC’s “Jimmy Kimmel Live,” and NBC’s “The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon.”

Fox despatched a cease-and-desist letter two weeks in the past to Mr. Carlson, who stays beneath contract to Fox till Dec. 31, 2024, over the June 6 launch of his Twitter present, Carlson lawyer Harmeet Dhillon advised Axios.

“Fox News continues to ignore the interests of its viewers, not to mention its shareholder obligations,” Ms. Dhillon mentioned.