Fox News Channel is getting ready to shake up weekends.
In the aftermath of the departure of weekend opinion host Dan Bongino, Fox News intends to add a new panel show to its Saturday-night grid, while ending Steve Hilton’s Sunday-night program, “The Next Revolution.” Hilton will take a contributor role as he focuses on the launch of a non-partisan policy organization in California. Bongino and Fox News parted ways in April after failing to come to terms on a new contract.
“We are excited to launch a new dynamic weekend line-up that will further solidify our position as the number one cable news network for more than two decades,” said Megan Albano, the Fox News senior vice president who oversees weekend programming and the weekday panel show “The Five,” in a statement. “We thank Steve Hilton for his show’s contributions and look forward to continuing to feature his valuable insights across our daytime and primetime programming.”
Fox News is believed to be considering similar options for parts of its weekday primetime schedule as well, in the wake of the recent ouster of former 8 p.m. opinion host Tucker Carlson.
Under the new schedule, Fox News Channel will launch a new program, “Fox News Saturday Night, “at 10 p.m. on Saturdays. The single-host program is billed as “offering a lighter take on the news of the week,” and will feature a rotating array of personalities. Fox News will air “The Big Weekend Show” at 7 p.m. on both Saturday and Sunday, rather than a bespoke panel show for each separate evening. That program previously aired at 5 p.m. on weekdays, but will be replaced in that time slot by repeats of “The Five,” Fox News Channel’s most-watched program.
Brian Kilmeade’s and Lawrence Jones’ programs, which air Saturdays at 8 p.m. and 9 p.m., respectively, will continue in those time slots.
On Sundays, Fox will follow “Big Weekend:” with “Life, Liberty and Levin” at 8 p.m. and “Sunday Night in America with Trey Gowdy” at 9 p.m. The 10 p.m. slot will be filled with a rotation of topical specials. In the past, some of those have been programs that debuted first on the Fox Nation streaming service.
“The Fox Report with Jon Scott,” a news-side program, will continue to air at 6 p.m. on both weekend evenings.
