Fox News Radio

History

In 2003, Fox News began syndicating one-minute radio updates to radio stations via syndication service Westwood One. But just a few years later, Fox opted to make a full foray into network radio news services. On June 1, 2005, Fox News Radio employed 60 people and provided five-minute newscasts at the top of the hour and a one-minute newscast at the bottom of the hour. At its launch, 60 stations participated in the network, with more joining under a deal struck between Fox and Clear Channel Communications (now iHeartMedia). This allowed many Clear Channel stations to carry Fox News Radio newscasts and allowed Fox News Radio to use and nationally distribute news content produced by Clear Channel, with several of those stations ending decades-long relationships dating back to the Golden Age of Radio with ABC News Radio (now owned by competitor Cumulus Media) and CBS Radio News to carry FNR.

Fox also produces Fox News Talk, with talk radio programs featuring Fox News personalities. The programs are heard on terrestrial radio stations in the U.S. as well as a dedicated channel on SiriusXM Satellite Radio's digital platform, on Channel 450.

In late 2015, Fox News Radio began offering Fox News Headlines 24/7 exclusively to SiriusXM subscribers on Channel 115. It's a completely live-anchored all-news radio station offering the top news, sports, entertainment and social media discussion in fifteen-minute blocks. It is a companion channel to the audio simulcasts of the Fox News Channel on SiriusXM 114 and Fox Business on SiriusXM 113.

Newscasts

The network provides around-the-clock newscasts on the hour and on the half-hour. Depending on a station's affiliation, they either receive a five-minute newscast or a one-minute newscast. Breaking news reports (dubbed Fox News Alerts), correspondent and expert interview availabilities, special broadcasts marking historic or newsworthy events, anchored "as-it-happens" coverage, and clean feeds of news events complete the affiliate service package. Affiliates also have access to a web site with a constantly updating selection of newsmaker audio and correspondent reports.

The five minute audio version of the on-the-hour newscast consisted of two minutes of news, one minute of ads or Fox promotions, and two more minutes of news, but in February 2017 the audio version eliminated the commercial/PSA break at the two-minute mark, so that the newscast runs only four minutes. It is available as a podcast. As of 2011, typically only one MP3 file, the most recent one, is available at any time. The Eastern Time hour number converted to 24-hour time is incorporated into the filename (for example, 5minpodcast21.mp3 for 9PM). However, if there has been exceptional news (a Fox News Alert), the file for that hour's podcast will be retained for a few hours. The current hour's file is usually available within 10 minutes of its broadcast, i.e., by a quarter past the top of the hour.

Newscasts are regularly anchored by Dave Anthony, Lisa Brady, Kathleen Maloney, Carmen Roberts, Tom Graham, Jane Metzler, Joe Chiaro, Lisa Lacerra, Chris Foster, Pam Puso, Rich Denison, Paul Stevens, Jack Callaghan, Kerin McCue, Pat O'Neill and Lilian Woo. Correspondents include Gurnal Scott and Tonya J. Powers in New York; Jon Decker (White House), Jared Halpern (Capitol Hill) and Rachel Sutherland in Washington; in Los Angeles, Jessica Rosenthal and entertainment reporter Michelle Pollino. Jeff Monosso reports from Chicago. Eben Brown reports from Miami. Simon Owen and Kitty Logan in London, Jessica Golloher in Jerusalem, Courtney Walsh in Rome, and Alastair Wanklyn in Tokyo serve as foreign correspondents. Daily short commentaries are delivered by Todd Starnes.

Programming

Fox News Radio also syndicates the following radio programs hosted by its TV personalities:

Three other radio programs hosted by Fox News Channel personalities are or were distributed by other companies. The Radio Factor hosted by Bill O'Reilly was produced by Fox News Radio but syndicated separately by Westwood One. This is because when Fox News started producing O'Reilly's radio show in 2002, it did not have the resources to syndicate, and thus outsourced the distribution to Westwood One. Fox and Westwood One have since renewed the agreement, in 2006 and again in 2007; O'Reilly decided to leave the show in February 2009. (Because The Radio Factor was produced by Fox, it was available on Fox News Talk, Fox's satellite radio channel. Westwood One does not sell its programs to satellite services.)

The talk radio programs hosted by FNC's Sean Hannity and former FNC personality Glenn Beck are syndicated by Premiere Networks. Hannity's show debuted before Fox News Radio had launched (and prior to 2009, was distributed by ABC Radio, later Citadel Media and currently Cumulus Media Networks), and Beck did not join the Fox organization until several years after his radio show had been on the air (he has since left Fox).

Hannity's program, The Sean Hannity Show, appears on the America Right and Sirius Patriot satellite channels.

On November 12, 2007, Fox News Radio debuted a 3-6 PM (Eastern) show hosted by Tom Sullivan, a long-time California radio talk show host who has been an anchor on the company's Fox Business Network. Sullivan's show continues to air live on its original home station, Sacramento's KFBK, and is also now being offered to other stations, usually on tape delay.

Sounders

Main newscasts start and end with a 5 note Orchestrated sounder. Before that they aired a 6 note guitar sounder. Both were written and arranged by Bruce Upchirch and Dave Meffert from Zone Radio Imaging, based in New York. FNR stations can use both sounders for local newscasts. Fox news reports use the same sounder used on the Fox News Channel.