Since the November election, Fox News has suffered a decline in ratings. The cable news giant has slipped from first to third place in ratings among major news networks.
And they just got a report that a huge new rival is looking to replace them among the mainstream cable news giants.
Nexstar Media Group announced on Monday they’re changing the name of WGN America to NewsNation as part of their effort to create a full-time, 24-hour news network.
The Texas-based company is also expanding its daily news coverage. NewsNation, which is based out of Chicago, will begin creating five hours of news programming daily, up from three hours. The rest of the day will be filled with sitcom reruns while the company continues to ramp up its news offerings.
Nexstar Media said they want NewsNation to directly compete with cable giants Fox News, CNN, and MSNBC for viewers.
As part of that plan, earlier this year NewsNation reached a multi-year deal to be included in the live TV streaming service Vidgo.
And in the two months prior, Nexstar has reached five other agreements with subscription-based streaming services for the distribution of NewsNation, expanding the network’s reach by 8.5 million subscribers.
While ambitious, NewsNation‘s start has been slow insiders report. Only a reported 12 percent of cable news viewers are reportedly aware of the channel.
“NewsNation is off to a slow start, drawing fewer than 100,000 viewers in prime time according to Nielsen data,” The Los Angeles Times reported. “But Nexstar’s decision to name the channel after the newscast is strong indication that it will forge ahead with long-term plans to be a player in cable news.”
The Horn editorial team