Fox News is really starting to become a religion.
The Fox division may be best known for its conservative hosts who fill its weekday evening prime-time schedule with what detractors call fire-and-brimstone rhetoric, but the company is trying to make a name for itself in the streaming wars with content tied to themes of faith and spirituality. And executives hope the rapid growth in the “Fox Faith” segment will lure more subscribers to the Fox Nation subscription service and bring in more viewers to other parts of the company.
When it comes to faith-based programming, “I think there’s an insatiable appetite among an underserved but very engaged audience,” Jason Claman, chief digital marketing officer at Fox News Media, said in a recent interview.
Fox News Media will announce Wednesday that it will launch a 52-episode podcast series, “The Life of Jesus Podcast,” starting Sunday, Nov. 30, as part of a licensing agreement with Gulfstream Studios. “Fox & Friends” co-host Ainsley Earhart presents each half-hour episode, guiding listeners through the life and teachings of Christ. Among the actors who voice characters in the series is Kristen Bell, who plays Mary Magdalene. Sean Astin plays Matthew. Neal McDonough plays Jesus. Brian Cox represents the voice of God. Malcolm McDowell plays Caiaphas. John Rhys-Davies narrates. and Julia Ormond, who plays the voice of Mary, Mother of God.
Fox News Media publishes episode dates relative to the Western calendar. The first 13 episodes debut to commemorate the beginning of Advent. A further 13 titles will be released on December 21st in time for Christmas. Another 13 will surface on February 15, in time for Lent. The final 13 will appear on Palm Sunday, March 29th.
Earhart may have sparked the development of “Fox Faith” with early Fox Nation shows focused on Bible study, but she believes many people are craving content that helps them cope with the difficult news stories and information overload that has become part of their daily lives. She said she often looked for sermons on YouTube about parenting, a topic she has a strong interest in, and liked the idea of having access to a library of well-produced shows.
“I’m just excited that more people are talking openly about their faith,” she said, noting that while her grandmother spent a lot of time in Bible study, there may not have been many people willing to discuss her faith with her on a regular basis.
The number of U.S. residents who say religion is important to their daily lives is a minority of the overall population, but that group is growing. In February, Pew Research revealed that 31% of American adults suggest that religion is becoming an increasingly influential force in American life. This figure represents the highest amount recorded by the organization in the past 15 years. A similar Pew survey conducted in February 2024 found that only 18% of American adults felt that religion was becoming more influential in American life.
Claman said Fox News is simply acting on what it learns from consumer responses. Executives noticed that Earhart’s Bible study series picked up steam around the holidays, noting strong sales of books by Fox News personalities like Shannon Bream, who examined the Bible in three different initiatives that she wrote. “Data tells us what they like and what they do, and we act on that.”
Matti Leshem, creator of Fox Nation’s documentary series “Saints,” which explores the lives of John the Baptist, Thomas Beckett and others, suggests faith-based programming could become more appealing in a world increasingly dependent on social media. He says the average person spends a lot of time on media that promotes comparisons with others and often contains information that isn’t completely accurate. It’s no wonder people are looking for inspiration in a “fractured and divided world,” Leshem says.
The new Fox News Media podcast launches following the debut of the program’s second season. The show’s first cycle was “Fox Nation’s best-performing series,” Claman said. The series has the “highest engagement” of viewers and the “highest acquisition” of subscribers, the executive added. Fox News does not regularly reveal total subscribers to Fox Nation, but Fox Corp. CEO Lachlan Murdoch said in March that the station has an estimated 2 million to 2.5 million subscribers.
The key to the success of “Saints” is its broad appeal, said producer Leshem, who created the series with the help of director Martin Scorsese. The life stories of St. Sebastian and others that have been told are full of “moral heroism,” Leshem said. “I think people are drawn to that, whether they’re atheists or believers or anything in between.”
“These are really moving stories,” he added. “It’s a very shocking show, a very dramatic show. There’s nothing Sunday School-y about it.” With more than 10,000 saints, “I could do this for the rest of my life,” he says.
Fox News Media is looking at other areas for growth, Claman said. Among them is the Fox News Wine Shop, which specializes in American wines, some of which are grown by veterans. The “delicious Tempranillo” served up from Texas may not be what any of the Saints portrayed in the docuseries will consume, but Fox News has likely already identified a certain demographic of thirsty viewers.
