INSIDE FOX NEWS! Network Bets Religious-Themed Programs Will Keep Viewers “Under Its Tent” — Insiders Reveal Strategy

Courtesy of Fox News Channel

Fox News is really starting to get religion.

The Fox Corp. division may best be known for the conservative hosts who fill its primetime schedule each weekday evening with what detractors would say is fire-and-brimstone oratory, but in the streaming wars, the company is working to make a name for itself with content tied to subjects of faith and spirituality. And executives hope a burgeoning “Fox Faith” vertical will lure more subscribers to its Fox Nation subscription service and bigger audiences to other parts of the company.

When it comes to faith-based programming, “I think there is an insatiable appetite among a very passionate audience that is underserved,” says Jason Klarman, chief digital and marketing officer at Fox News Media, during a recent interview.

Fox News Media is expected to announce Wednesday that it will launch a 52-episode podcast series, “The Life of Jesus Podcast,” starting Sunday, November 30, as part of a licensing deal with Gulfstream Studios. “Fox & Friends” co-host Ainsley Earhardt will introduce each half-hour episode, guiding listeners through the life and teachings of Christ. Among the actors voicing characters in the series are  Kristen Bell, who plays Mary Magdalene; Sean Astin, who plays Matthew; Neal McDonough, who plays Jesus; Brian Cox, who represents  the Voice of God; Malcolm McDowell, who portrays Caiaphas; John Rhys-Davies, who narrates; and Julia Ormond, who voices Mary, Mother of God.

Fox News Media will release the episodes dates tied to the Christian calendar. The first 13 episodes debut to mark the start of Advent. Thirteen more will be released December 21, during the run-up to Christmas. Thirteen more will surface on February 15, in time for Lent. And the final batch of 13 appear March 29, on Palm Sunday.

Earhardt, who may have helped spark the development of “Fox Faith” with an early Fox Nation show focused on Bible study, believes more people are eager for content that helps them grapple with the difficult news stories and information overload that have become part of daily life. She says she has often looked for sermons on YouTube tied to raising children, a subject in which she has strong interest, but likes the idea of being able to turn to a library of well-produced programming.

“I just am excited that more people are open to talking about faith,” she says, noting that her grandmother devoted significant time to Bible study, but may not have found a lot of people willing to discuss it with her on a regular basis.

While the number of U.S. residents who say religion is important to their daily lives represents a minority of the overall populace, the group has been growing. Pew Research found in February of this year that 31% of U.S. adults of U.S. indicated religion was gaining influence in American life. The figure represents the highest the organization has seen in 15 years. In February of 2024, a similar Pew survey found just 18% of U.S. adults felt religion was gaining influence in life in the United States.

Fox News is simply acting on what it learns from consumer response, says Klarman. Executives noticed that Earhardt’s Bible study series got a lift around the holiday season, and noted robust sales for books from Fox News personalities like Shannon Bream, who has examined the Bible in three different efforts she has authored. “Data tells us what they like and what they are doing, and we execute against it.”

Faith-based programming may hold more appeal in a world that depends more heavily on social media, suggests Matti Leshem, the creator of the Fox Nation docuseries “Saints,” which delves into the lives of John the Baptist, Thomas Becket and others.  The average person spends more hours with media outlets that spur comparisons with other people, he says, and often contain information that is not entirely accurate. Little wonder, Leshem says, that in a “fractured, divided world” people are seeking inspiration.

The new Fox News Media podcast launches following the debut of the program’s second season. The first cycle of the show was the “best performing series on Fox Nation,” says Klarman. The series has the “best engagement” of viewers and the “best acquisition” of subscribers, the executive adds. Fox News doesn’t regularly disclose the total subscription base to Fox Nation, but Fox Corp. CEO Lachlan Murdoch said in March that the outlet had an estimated 2 million to 2.5 million subscribers.

Key to the success of “Saints” is its broader appeal, says Leshem, a producer who created the series with the backing of director Martin Scorsese.  Stories of the lives of Saint Sebastian and others who have been portrayed are filled with “moral heroism,” says Leshem. “I think that people are drawn to that whether you’re an atheist or a believer or someone in between.”

“These are really inspiring stories,” he adds. “This is a very hard-hitting show, a very dramatic show. There’s nothing very Sunday school about it at all.”  With more than 10,000 saints, he says, “I could do this for the rest of my life.”

Fox News Media is looking for other areas of growth, says Klarman. Among them is a Fox News Wine Shop that specializes in wines made in the U.S., some of them cultivated by veterans. A “tasty Tempranillo” offered from Texas may not be something consumed by any of the Saints portrayed in the documentary series, but Fox News likely has already identified a certain segment of its audience that has a thirst.