Trump the Media Mogul? POTUS's reported news network aims to dethrone Fox as the conservative voice of America
President Donald Trump, in an act of vengeance against Fox News, is reportedly planning his own conservative news channel, reports state. A source with knowledge of the president's plan, while talking to Axios, said: "He plans to wreck Fox. No doubt about it." The Republican's ire at Fox erupted after the network called the state of Arizona for his political rival Joe Biden on election night itself. Fox, a renowned conservative network, was the first outlet to call Arizona, which has voted Republican for years. Although the Associated Press also came up with the results shortly after, several other news outlets held off from declaring the state in favor of the former vice president as the margins were high. Fox, despite pressure from Trump administration officials, however, stuck to its call.
The report of Trump plotting to launch a rival network comes amid years of speculation that the Republican wants to start his own cable news network. The start-up costs of setting up a network, however, is expensive and the Republican would have to get such a channel played on cable systems, which is a lengthy and again, expensive process. The president, instead, is now reportedly considering resorting to a digital news channel, which would charge a monthly fee from his "Make America Great Again" (MAGA) supporters, according to Axios. It is believed that the Republicans could use his database of email and cellphone contacts, taken from those who signed for his campaign rallies, to assist him in getting the required subscribers for his channel.
President Trump, over the past few months, has been visibly frustrated with Fox News' coverage, generally when the outlet's news is not in his favor, like popularity or presidential polls. The Republican, during his first presidential debate in September this year, against Biden, had slammed moderator and 'Fox & Friends' host Chris Wallace, claiming that the respected Fox news anchor was on Biden's side.
The Republican, before Election Day, also complained about Fox News' polls, which showed the former vice president winning, and again denounced the network a day later by calling in to 'Fox & Friends' show and complaining to the hosts about their network. He said: "Fox, it's much different now."
"In the old days, they wouldn't put sleepy Joe Biden on every time he opened his mouth. . . . It's a much different operation — I'm just telling you," he added.
Trump, whose days in the White House are now numbered, has reportedly vowed to exact revenge on the network, The Washington Post reported citing sources from his administration. The Republican, however, continues to remain close to some of its opinion hosts, including Sean Hannity, Laura Ingraham, and Jeanine Pirro.
When Fox News called Arizona for Biden on election night, Trump reportedly erupted in anger and told others in the White House to "get that result changed,"a senior administration official told The Post. White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows subsequently called in Fox News's decision desk while senior adviser Hope Hicks contacted Raj Shah, a former Trump White House staffer whom she hired at Fox. Both reportedly called in to get the network to reverse its decision. White House senior adviser Jared Kushner even contacted Fox Corp.'s billionaire owner Rupert Murdoch in an effort to get their stance reversed. However, the network stood by its decision.