By RASHAD ROLLE
Tribune Staff Reporter
rrolle@tribunemedia.net
LESS than one percent of Cable Bahamas' monthly viewership came from people watching Fox News, and among news-watchers, only five percent watched the conservative channel, Cable Bahamas' vice president of marketing and media, David Burrows said yesterday.
His comments came as The Tribune continued to receive angry emails from fans of the channel after it was removed from Cable Bahamas' line-up. Some people, with no evidence to support their claim, insisted the channel's elimination was part of a wider anti-conservative agenda.
In fact, Mr Burrows said keeping the channel made little business sense for the company. Highlighting the disparity between the cost and popularity of the channel, he said Cable Bahamas pays less than one-third the price of Fox News for a rival news channel that experiences 300 percent more viewership.
"It's a very delicate thing, removing a channel," he acknowledged, adding the decision to eliminate Fox News was made after a lengthy period of deliberation. "These are our customers. We respect them. But in The Bahamas we do not get the same rates for basic cable television as providers get in the US. It is incumbent on us as a cable/television provider to understand cost implications over a period of time."
The decision to eliminate Fox News was made as the cost of the channel was set to increase.
An email sent to The Tribune from a Fox news publicist, Teresa Rivera, vice president of international distribution for Fox News, appeared to dispute this, saying: "Fox News kept the rates flat for all co-op members."
But Mr Burrows said this is "disingenuous".
"Cost remains flat for year one and two," he explained, "but we have a five-year agreement. With the new contract, cost would now go up 20 percent on top of the 43 percent it has already increased over the past five years. By 2022, the price would have gone up 63 percent."
He added: "We have shareholders and customers. Our product must maintain some level of profitability. Fox News is the most-watched news channel in the US, but here the demographic is just different. It's not nearly as popular. Of course, we don't make these decisions simply based on profitability. We ask ourselves, first of all, is there an alternative as we are cognizant of the fact people desire another perspective of news. When we heard what the cost increase was going to be we were presented with an alternative. By embracing that alternative, the perspective shared by Fox News will still be in our market."
That alternative is One America News Network, which Cable Bahamas last week said is the fastest growing conservative news channel in the US.
Comments
truetruebahamian 6 years, 10 months ago
This makes more sense than Fox News ever did!
Regardless 6 years, 10 months ago
...perhaps if people watched more Fox News they may be more demanding of their public officials!
ThisIsOurs 6 years, 10 months ago
Those Fox reporters are crazy, allegedly :|. Did you see when Hannity diverted to a car chase to deflect from some Russian probe investigation story? It was THE most weird thing I've ever seen. They actively bend the news, it's not just biased, it's very irresponsible.
I remember shortly after 9/11 happened I saw the same weirdness from msnbc, they seem to have calmed down these days, whenever they showed the photo of some terrorism suspect they would darken the eyes and make them look sinister, when if in real life they looked that sinister and evil they would have been picked out of the line ages ago.then they started reporting that "breaking news, the terrorists have elected a leader!!!", And so??? Every group has a leader. Fox News takes this kind of reporting to the extreme. I'm not sure if people believe their stories or they just find them entertaining
milesair 6 years, 10 months ago
The latest B.S. by Hannity is to blame Obama for the stock market collapse that occurred on Monday. When the stock market does well it is because of Trump don't you know! These people pull this nonsense out of their a$$ which is where most of the right-wing B.S. originates! Obama and Hillary are to blame for everything according to Trump and his GOP minions. Never mind that it is Obama who is responsible for the so-called booming U.S. economy, not Trump! As usual, insanity prevails especially with Hannity and the Faux News nonsense! Proud to be a Trump/GOP hater as Trump is the most dangerous President the U.S. has ever had.
sunseeker 6 years, 10 months ago
LOL, funniest thing I ever heard. You have no clue.. Obama destroyed the USA. Get ready for Trump to be here for another 7 years followed by more conservative power after that. Massive tax cuts, companies moving back to the States, bonuses being given out from 100's of companies. Jobs being created .. what did Obama do that was so Great? Name one thing? Democrats are done.. they are broke , no money and lost their minds.. You must be a CNN fan..LOL.. another big joke.
ThisIsOurs 6 years, 10 months ago
I'm amazed how easily people forget, I remember a French offshore consultant telling me stories about the derivatives Wild wild West days when there were no regulations, lots and lots of money was being made... then it crashed. Of course businesses dont like to be regulated, but regulations protect you and your son and daughter working at the steel mill where they removed the regulation that requires you to report injuries. Protects your wife or husband at the power plant where they remove the requirements for safety. Protects the food you eat when they allow the factory to dump closer to the water supply. Reduce costs increase profit right?
Deregulation makes people takes greater risks. Greater risks means greater rewards AND more risk.
ohdrap4 6 years, 10 months ago
That is lkike emailing Solomon's when the price of Super Value goes up.
Check the ISP, Tribune, the emails are all coming from Sandilands.
Greentea 6 years, 10 months ago
LMAO!
stillwaters 6 years, 10 months ago
Good one!!!
MonkeeDoo 6 years, 10 months ago
Cable Bahamas have not learned the lesson of May 10 2017. People are no longer interested an vagaries such as what percent watch or dont watch Fox. We want the hard cold numbers How many is 1% and how many does each other channel that we pay for in a package attract. I pay for CNN, BBC, MSNBC, ABC, CBS, NBC, ZNS & a heap more. And I don't watch these. Can we just pay for the ones that we watch ? This stupidity comes at a bad time when the Government is about to divest itself of the ALIV investment. How much investment capital do you toadies think that the 1% control. Maybe they will dump their Cable Bahamas shares and never invest in any new Pref offerings you may need to sell in the future. Pissing people off is never a good idea. But these 1% maybe your deplorables !! Sound familiar ?
juju 6 years, 10 months ago
Cable Bahamas is “dumbing down” (sadly) to the level of their clientele.. Perhaps more Bahamians SHOULD watch Fox News and learn something instead of watching tthe trash that is now left on Cable Bahamas. Shame on you. Please bring it back!
joeblow 6 years, 10 months ago
Are there any other channels with less than 1% viewership that Cable Bahamas has kept? That is the question!
Sickened 6 years, 10 months ago
I'm sure 90% of their channels have less than 1% viewership.
proudloudandfnm 6 years, 10 months ago
Well that's good. Only 1% watch that chanel of lies and manipulation.
Proud to be Bahamian. We better than Fox watchers...
proudloudandfnm 6 years, 10 months ago
No one EVER learns a damned thing watching fox. Fox viewers are the most missinformed viewers in the arena. Fact...
joeblow 6 years, 10 months ago
You may speak for yourself, but there would be no concern if other viewers felt the same as you do! Obviously others disagree with you and they have a right to do so, despite your aspersions!
proudloudandfnm 6 years, 10 months ago
I also believe that the US could not have invaded Iraq without Fox promoting bush's lies...
proudloudandfnm 6 years, 10 months ago
Of course they dissagree. Lol. Their Fox watchers. They don't know anything... lol...
sealice 6 years, 10 months ago
Am glad to see a lot Bahamians commenting here because i was sure more then 1% of you DumbArses were hooked on the Fox Drivel.....
ThisIsOurs 6 years, 10 months ago
Not sure if you reside here or not, but i discovered a white unicorn a few years ago, a "lazy not so bright (putting it mildly) Chinese student". I was shocked. I was to the North in an education program, where there was a large community of Chinese. This person was a leech, did no work, didn't understand anything. I mentioned it to a friend and their input was, in your country you were exposed to the best and brightest of them, go to their country and you'll see the range of mental acuity.
I say all that to say, the world is wide and filled with people with different manifestations of talent, there are probably plenty dumbarses where you come from and you know it.
ohdrap4 6 years, 10 months ago
i know it.
DEDDIE 6 years, 10 months ago
Bahamians don't watch Fox News because it is anti-black and anti-Obama.
ashley14 6 years, 10 months ago
I don't believe Fox News is racist. It's anti-Obama because of his policies, not his race. He has a lot of socialist ideas, and we don't want America to become a socialist nation. Obama is fine as a person, but I don't like supporting people that are very capable of doing themselves. I'm not talking about SSI or disability. I'm talking about welfare. Fox News tells it like it is.
ThisIsOurs 6 years, 10 months ago
Are you ready to get rid of Medicare for the elderly and the disabled war vets? Or is it only the black people you're concerned with?
ashley14 6 years, 10 months ago
Really don't go there. It has nothing to do with race. If you don't believe me I can't help it. Medicare wasn't even mentioned. It's health insurance for the elderly, and the answer is absolutely not. Disabled war vets get disability and they have the VA. If you put me in charge I would improve both for elderly and vets.
ashley14 6 years, 10 months ago
It started out we were talking about Fox News. Have a good day. Some people really don't see race.
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