How Fox Business Has Only Made CNBC Stronger

Fortune | Jessi Hempel | April 1, 2008 08:27 AM

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Six months after Rupert Murdoch launched a business network set to take out the peacock with the same tenacity that Fox News tromped CNN, quite the opposite has happened: CNBC has instead emerged stronger from the competition. Fox Business Network (FBN) declined to make any executives available to interview for this story, but at a recent media conference, while talking about increasing distribution for the channel, Murdoch said, "We've got to get to 60 million homes, and then Roger can really blast CNBC." He was speaking of Roger Ailes, the swaggering TV exec who ran CNBC for six years before decamping to News Corp. to launch Fox News, then FBN.

"You never pull the trigger until you know that you can win," Ailes told attendees at a New York media breakfast in 2005. His charges were equally cocky. On FBN's first day on the air, stocks editor Liz MacDonald reported live from the side of a highway in Englewood Cliffs, N.J. - just across from CNBC headquarters. If you tuned in, you couldn't have missed the sarcasm in her voice as she referred to Jersey as "sleepy" and "bucolic," saying, "It's hunting season, and we hear that peacocks are in season."

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- pnwskier See Profile I'm a Fan of pnwskier

They're both awful, really awful, and are regarded as such by just nearly everybody in the finance/investment industry. The fact that the anchors are treated as "experts" by the parent networks is the biggest joke of all. To see Maria Bartiromo and Erin Burnett in the lead segment of Meet the Press, parroting whatever talking points they picked up during the week had to constitute one of the low points ever of the show (behind the unexplainable fixation with Carville-Matalin- etc.) Fox is infinitely worse, however. I'm sure Rebecca Gomez would be really fun to have as a girlfriend, but Cody Willard (who is knowledgeable) has to be dying inside every time she opens her mouth.

Favorite Flag as abusive Posted 07:32 PM on 04/01/2008

- BOfever See Profile I'm a Fan of BOfever

I think CNBC and the man pictures above lost a lot of credibility a couple weeks back when Cramer tole everyone to keep their money in Bear Stearns . . . 2 days later the stock went from $130 to $2. Nice advice.

Favorite Flag as abusive Posted 12:41 PM on 04/01/2008

- quadman See Profile I'm a Fan of quadman

I guess competition IS good!

Favorite Flag as abusive Posted 11:51 AM on 04/01/2008

- Spud777 See Profile I'm a Fan of Spud777

Fox cable network is the Wal-Mart of non-news. Do not patronize these clowns.

Favorite Flag as abusive Posted 11:06 AM on 04/01/2008

- b2008 See Profile I'm a Fan of b2008

Anything and everything FOX is atrocious! MSNBC is 100% better and informative!

Favorite Flag as abusive Posted 10:40 AM on 04/01/2008

- casper11 See Profile I'm a Fan of casper11

If MSNBC is so good and their ratings soooo high, why do Olberman and Abrams keep throwing jabs at CNN and FOX every night? Could it be that they are using Hillary tactics and throwing mud at the two networks that are kicking their butt in the ratings war.

Favorite Flag as abusive Posted 10:45 AM on 04/01/2008

- fignozzle See Profile I'm a Fan of fignozzle

get a grip!
listen to fox, they do the same thing all the time.

Favorite Flag as abusive Posted 11:36 AM on 04/01/2008

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- TheJibreelaMonsters See Profile I'm a Fan of TheJibreelaMonsters

Fox Business I just started getting this on my cable. I like it

Favorite Flag as abusive Posted 10:31 AM on 04/01/2008

- Spud777 See Profile I'm a Fan of Spud777

Do you like the "news" or the eye candy and short skirts?

Favorite Flag as abusive Posted 11:09 AM on 04/01/2008

- swift_goat_pet_for_truth See Profile I'm a Fan of swift_goat_pet_for_truth