Fox News will launch its rebooted “Fox & Friends” morning program on Monday, September 16, the channel says.
Elisabeth Hasselbeck will join Steve Doocy and Brian Kilmeade that day, along with a brand new set. Hasselbeck left ABC’s “The View” in July, and announced that she would be joining the Fox News morning show to replace Gretchen Carlson, who will be getting her own news program in the afternoon. Hasselbeck had been with “The View” since 2003.
She joins a morning program that has led its cable competition consistently for almost 12 years straight, although it is not as widely-watched as the network morning programs. Hasselbeck brings network experience and a big brand name to a program that previously relied heavily on in-house talent. Doocy and Kilmeade have been with the show since it launched.
As it happens, “Fox & Friends” will debut its new set just a week after NBC’s “Today” refreshes its own set.
Details, below.
ELISABETH HASSELBECK TO DEBUT AS CO-HOST OF FOX & FRIENDS ON MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 16th
FOX News Channel’s (FNC) Elisabeth Hasselbeck will debut as co-host of top-rated cable news morning show FOX & Friends (6:00-9:00 AM/ET) on Monday, September 16th, announced Bill Shine, Executive Vice President of Programming for FOX News. She will join current co-hosts Steve Doocy and Brian Kilmeade on a redesigned set that will be unveiled that morning.
In her new role, Hasselbeck, who previously served as a co-host on ABC’s The View, will interview key newsmakers, celebrities and politicians on a brand new curvy couch alongside veteran co-hosts Doocy and Kilmeade, both of whom have been with the program since it debuted in 1998. Together, they will also provide viewers with a combination of lively topical discussions and casual and spontaneous dialogue while highlighting the latest headlines of the day.
For 15 years, FOX & Friends has been the signature morning program for the network, providing an alternative to the formulaic broadcast morning shows. The show has eclipsed the competition as the most-watched morning show in cable news for over 140 months, routinely beating CNN and MSNBC combined in both total viewers and the A25-54 demo during that timeslot. Featuring interviews with numerous celebrities, athletes and political heavyweights, the program also includes regular stunts and musical performances both on set and outside before gathering crowds. Additionally, each hour of the show offers reports on general news, sports, weather, politics, business and entertainment.
FOX News Channel (FNC) is a 24-hour all-encompassing news service dedicated to delivering breaking news as well as political and business news. A top five cable network, FNC has been the most watched news channel in the country for more than eleven years and according to Public Policy Polling, is the most trusted television news source in the country. Owned by 21st Century Fox, FNC is available in more than 90 million homes and dominates the cable news landscape, routinely notching the top ten programs in the genre.