Fox News overhauls prime-time lineup

Fox News has announced major changes to its weekday prime-time lineup beginning next month.

Jesse Watters’s 7 p.m. program will move to 8 p.m. and take the slot previously held by former host Tucker Carlson, while Laura Ingraham will have her program moved into Watters’s 7 p.m. hour.

Longtime host Sean Hannity’s show will remain at 9 p.m., and late-night host and comedian Greg Gutfeld will host a show at 10 p.m.

The changes will take effect on July 17, the network said. 

In a statement announcing the moves, Fox News Media CEO Suzanne Scott said “the unique perspectives of Laura Ingraham, Jesse Watters, Sean Hannity, and Greg Gutfeld will ensure our viewers have access to unrivaled coverage from our best-in-class team for years to come.”

The overhaul of Fox’s prime-time lineup comes just weeks after it parted ways with Carlson, its formerly top-rated prime-time pundit who had hosted the 8 p.m. hour since 2016. 

Watters and Gutfeld, who both are members of cable news’ most watched show “The Five,” were each given their own eponymous programs in recent years.  

All three of Watters, Ingraham and Gutfeld’s shows keeping their names and format. Watters and Gutfeld will remain co-hosts of “The Five.” 

Fox’s prime-time lineup has long been ranked as the most watched slate of programming on cable news, drawing audiences consistently averaging millions of viewers each weeknight. 

The network’s prime-time shows have for years served as a megaphone for GOP messaging and a platform for Republicans seeking public office to reach voters and fundraise. 

The changes at Fox also come amid broader concerns facing the cable news industry relating to cord cutting and changing news consumption habits. 

Updated at 11:46 a.m.