When Newsmax host Carl Higbie replaced Sean Spicer as the host of the 5 PM ET timeslot on the cable news network in 2023, he set out to make sure one thing was clear: he wanted cable news to be simpler.
“I see something and I say what I mean and I don’t really hold back,” Higbie said of his approach to his Newsmax show. “I don’t try to make it pretty with big words. And I just try to get my point across and how I feel. I think it resonated. I think there’s a lot of people out there that are like ‘I’m so sick and tired of being spoon-fed placid niceties of these big words with people trying to be the story.’ I’d rather just tell the story.”
That approach has certainly worked. Carl Higbie Frontline saw the biggest growth of any Newsmax show in the first quarter of 2025. During January, February, and March, Higbie’s 5 PM ET program saw a 45% year-over-year increase.
Higbie was quick to disperse credit for the success of the show.
“We have a very collaborative team,” he said when asked about the ratings bump in recent months. “One of the things I take pride in is being involved in literally every segment. I write a lot of the show, but I have a fantastic team that really really backs me up. The cohesiveness of our team is fantastic.
“The other thing is, I’m not a fancy guy. I’m pretty much a normal dude. And I think that resonates. I’m not a journalist. A lot of people on TV have a career in journalism. My career background is in war, construction management, private equity, and a variety of different things. So I bring a very different point of view.”
The Newsmax host served in the United States Navy from 2005 to 2012, which included two tours in Iraq and ultimately rising to the rank of Special Warfare Operator, First Class and served as a Navy SEAL. He pointed to that experience, as well as his experience in construction management, as how his worldview and his approach to his cable news show was shaped.
“It makes me back up my opinion,” said Higbie. “If you’re building a bridge — which is what I was, in infrastructure construction management — it doesn’t matter what someone’s opinion is. It doesn’t matter if there’s an excuse or a reason for something not getting done. Is the bridge built or not? Is the building built or not? Can you move into the top floor of this building? Is it ready to move into? If the answer is no, then you haven’t done your job.
“And with journalism, if I don’t know what I’m talking about, if I don’t have the information, if I give a faulty report or a partial report, I haven’t completed the job … It’s like I need to give the full story to the best extent, and when I report on something, is there a deliverable? … That is something that my career previously has been tuned to, is a deliverable result. As a Navy SEAL, you go out, you kill the bad guys, or the bad guys kill you. It’s that simple. So everything has to be made into a very simple scenario.”
The last few weeks have been a whirlwind for Newsmax. On March 31st, Newsmax began trading on the New York Stock Exchange. The price soared to more than 700% of its opening price of $10. While the price has come back down to earth, the network was in the news as founder Chris Ruddy became an overnight billionaire.
Carl Higbie shared his belief that investors have viewed the outlet as a movement, putting their belief behind conservatism and the place Newsmax occupies in that ecosystem.
“I don’t think conventional investors understood that we are a movement,” said Higbie. “Newsmax is not as accessible as some of the other networks out there, yet we are beating some of those networks in ratings. The reason is because I think people who find Newsmax had to go looking for it, and they found it on YouTube TV, on their cable box for their provider, or they downloaded the app. They are specifically dedicated to our flow of information because I think we do a really good job.
“These are people that didn’t necessarily invest in Newsmax to make money, they invested in Newsmax because they believed in something, in a product they enjoyed and they wanted to be a part of it. And to have investors, to have people put their own money forward to do that, that makes me come to work every day,” Higbie admitted. “I feel like ‘Holy (expletive), these people put up their personal money because they believe in the mission that I’m trying to fight for every single day.’ It makes me work really hard … That’s a humbling experience for me.”
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Garrett Searight is Barrett Media’s News Editor, which includes writing bi-weekly industry features and a weekly column. He has previously served as Program Director and Afternoon Co-Host on 93.1 The Fan in Lima, OH, and is the radio play-by-play voice of Northern Michigan University hockey. Reach out to him at Garrett@BarrettMedia.com.
