Fox News has announced a lineup shuffle that will see Jesse Watters, host of Watters’ World and co-host of The Five, officially taking over Tucker Carlson’s former prime-time slot. The change, revealed by Fox News Media CEO Suzanne Scott, will go into effect on July 17.
The new prime-time lineup will kick off with Laura Ingraham and her show, The Ingraham Angle, at 7:00 p.m. Eastern, a shift from her previous 10:00 p.m. slot. Jesse Watters will then take over the 8:00 p.m. slot with his new show, Jesse Watters Primetime. Sean Hannity’s show, Hannity, will maintain its 9:00 p.m. slot, while Greg Gutfeld’s Gutfeld! will move to 10:00 p.m., replacing Ingraham. FOX News @ Night with Trace Gallagher will air at 11:00 p.m., an hour earlier than before.
Jesse Watters Primetime has been a major success for Fox News. Its launch at 7:00 p.m. last year made it the fastest-growing cable news program. Since then, it has consistently held the number one spot in its time slot, breaking records for viewership in the 7:00 p.m./ET hour on cable news.
This lineup shuffle comes about two months after Tucker Carlson’s controversial departure. In the first full month following Carlson’s exit, Fox News experienced a nearly one-third decrease in prime-time viewership. MSNBC, for the first time in five years, outperformed both Fox News and CNN in total prime-time viewers.
Despite leaving Fox News, Tucker Carlson has remained active with a new Twitter show. The show’s first episode garnered over 100 million views, ensuring that his presence continues to be felt in the media landscape.