Viacom is denying that it plans to launch a news channel, “conservative or otherwise,” to take on Fox News after a Tuesday report in The Hollywood Reporter caught fire in media circles.
“Viacom has no intention of launching a TV news channel, conservative or otherwise,” a Viacom spokesman told several media outlets when asked for comment.
{mosads}The Hollywood Reporter reported on Tuesday that Shari Redstone, the daughter of Viacom patriarch Sumner Redstone, is exploring the possibility of rebranding an existing Viacom channel and has spoken to former Fox News host Megyn Kelly.
Shari Redstone’s spokesperson also denied the report to several outlets but confirmed that she had met with President Trump in the past few weeks.
Viacom and CBS are currently seeking regulatory approval for a merger. The two companies were one entity before splitting in 2006.
Fox News has dominated the cable news landscape, topping rivals MSNBC and CNN for 71 consecutive quarters, and it has little ratings competition from right-leaning broadcast news outlets that include Newsmax TV, BlazeTV and One America News Network.
The Hill has reached out to Viacom for comment.