Fox Corp. expanded its reach into the growing podcast market on Monday by scooping up Red Seat Ventures, the digital media company whose clients include former Fox News stars Megyn Kelly and Tucker Carlson.
The deal represents an investment in an area of media where personalities such as Carlson, Kelly, Piers Morgan and Shawn Ryan reach millions of subscribers via podcasts and streaming shows.
It will also help Fox News, which is the highest-rated cable network, reach younger audiences who are increasingly tuning in to podcasts for information.
Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Valerie Wirtschafter, a senior data analyst in the Artificial Intelligence and Emerging Technology Initiative at the Brookings Institution, told Reuters that podcasts, particularly conservative podcasts, have grown in popularity in a decentralized media landscape.
“Podcast hosts are extremely trusted. They’re sort of like friends,” she said. “They’re more intimate. They’re inside your head.”
President Donald Trump’s appearance on the popular “Joe Rogan Experience” in October was credited with helping him reach an audience of mostly young male voters — a crucial demographic that helped him clinch the presidency.
Red Seat Ventures — named for the red seat in Boston’s Fenway Park that marked the park’s longest home run — provides a range of services for its talent, from billing and payroll to production support, the company said.
In January, The New York Post – owned by News Corp, which shares common ownership with Fox Corp. – retained Red Seat to develop a new daily podcast and audio division for the newspaper.
Red Seat’s client list includes former New York Times journalist Bari Weiss, former HLN host Nancy Grace, true-crime podcaster Chris Hansen, television personality Dr. Phil and former Fox News host Bill O’Reilly.
The deal brings O’Reilly, Kelly and Carlson back into the fold, though Red Seat Ventures will operate independently within Fox’s Tubi Media Group.
That group operates a free video streaming service. The former Fox talent will not be employed by Fox, however.
“We see tremendous opportunities to drive additional scale in genres such as sports, news and entertainment,” Tubi Media Group CEO Paul Cheesbrough said in a statement Monday.
The Red Seat deal is not Fox’s first foray into the podcasting space. In 2021, the company acquired Outkick, a right-leaning sports and political commentary website and podcast founded by Clay Travis.
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