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Fox News Digital Sets Record for Total Digital Unique Visitors

BNM Staff
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Fox News Digital Sets Record for Total Digital Unique Visitors

Fox News Digital just closed one of its best quarters ever, setting a record with 138 million monthly unique digital visitors.

For the 12th quarter straight, Fox News topped multiplatform views, and for the 17th consecutive quarter, it led in total minutes watched. Fox News Digital surged to 12.1 billion multiplatform minutes in Q2 2025, a sharp 31% jump over the same period last year, and 5.7 billion total multiplatform views, up 19%.

Meanwhile, the network’s competitors stumbled. CNN saw its engagement decline across the board — views dropped 18%, minutes watched fell 27%, and unique visitors declined 13%, marking its worst quarter since 2015.

NBC News and ABC News also finished behind Fox News Digital in nearly every key metric. Fox’s mobile app alone attracted 6.5 million unique viewers during the quarter, underscoring its broad reach.

The YouTube battleground tells a similar story. Fox News racked up its best quarter ever with 1.2 billion video views — surpassing MSNBC’s 1 billion and CNN’s 659 million. Fox Business also featured 180 million views on YouTube.

Social media engagement remains another clear differentiator. Fox News generated a jaw-dropping 244 million total social interactions during the three-month period, notching its 44th consecutive quarter as the top news brand on social platforms. Facebook interactions surged 630%, Instagram climbed 19%, and even X (formerly Twitter) interactions increased 16%.

On TikTok, Fox News pulled in 59 million engagements, signaling its growing footprint with younger audiences.

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Tatjana Deegan Named SVP, Market Manager at Audacy Austin

BMM Staff
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Tatjana Deegan Named SVP, Market Manager at Audacy Austin

Tatjana Deegan has been elevated to Senior Vice President and Market Manager at Audacy Austin.

Deegan rises from Vice President of Sales for Audacy Austin, where she has overseen radio, event, and digital sales since 2024. She has been serving as interim market manager and will also continue in her role as Vice President of Sales for the market.

“Over the past few months, Tatjana has seamlessly led the team with the powerful combination of her contagious passion for this business and people-first leadership,” said Brian Purdy, Regional President, Audacy. “Since stepping in as Vice President of Sales a little over a year ago, she has been a driving force in the market’s success, and we’re confident she’ll bring that same energy and creativity to her expanded role. We’re excited to see how she continues to uplift our Austin brands.”

“What an amazing opportunity I have been given to lead the incredibly talented Austin team. I’m so happy to call Audacy home,” said Deegan. “I am grateful for this opportunity to learn and grow under the leadership of Brian Purdy and to work alongside Vice President of Programming and Operations, Nikki Nite!”  

Barrett Media produces daily content on the music, news, and sports media industries. To stay updated, sign up for our newsletters and get the latest information delivered straight to your inbox.

Dave Portnoy Regrets Ever Doing a Barstool Sports Partnership With ESPN

BSM Staff
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Dave Portnoy Regrets Ever Doing a Barstool Sports Partnership With ESPN

Barstool Sports and FOX Sports are officially entering into a partnership. Yesterday, Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy made the announcement via The Unnamed Show, as the digital sports giant is teaming up with its second national television network on a three-year agreement. This follows their short-lived 2017 partnership with ESPN.

Portnoy was a guest on FOX & friends Friday morning to discuss the deal with the network. Additionally, he was asked to reflect on lessons learned from Barstool Sports’ previous agreement with ESPN.

“When we did the ESPN deal, they looked like they had a sour taste in their mouth every time they looked at me,” said Portnoy. “They, at the time, wanted to get two of our talent PFT Commenter and Big Cat. But they wanted nothing to do with Barstool.”

Notably, the short-lived partnership with ESPN in 2017 lasted only one episode, as Dan “Big Cat” Katz and Eric “PFT Commenter” Sollenberger’s Barstool Van Talk program was canceled after its debut. ESPN then cut ties with the partnership, which Portnoy says was a mistake on ESPN’s end.

“They’re embarrassed by it [Barstool Sports]. They didn’t want to touch it. They didn’t want to admit they were associated with it,” said Portnoy of ESPN. “FOX is the exact opposite. They’re embracing everything we do. They’re embracing why people like us. They’re basically being a true partner.”

Furthermore, Portnoy said that ESPN, behind the scenes, wanted exactly what the Barstool Sports brand delivers in terms of talent and audience. However, the front-facing side of the partnership told a different story.

“I never liked ESPN. I should have never done a deal with ESPN,” said Portnoy. “I hate ESPN. So, I’m very happy that we’re with FOX Sports.”

As part of the new partnership with FOX Sports, Portnoy will appear on FOX Sports’ Big Noon Kickoff as a regular contributor. According to a FOX Sports release, Big Noon Kickoff will also feature appearances from a variety of Barstool personalities—including Dan Katz, widely known as “Big Cat.”

Additionally, Barstool College Football Show, the Barstool-produced program, will join Big Noon Kickoff on-location for select games throughout the college football season. The show is set to air across Barstool-owned channels from 9:00–9:45 AM ET, as well as across FOX platforms including Tubi, the FOX Sports App, and FoxSports.com. It will also feature appearances from Big Noon Kickoff talent.

In addition, Portnoy announced that Barstool Sports will debut a two-hour daily program on FS1 from 8:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. However, while no official start date or talent lineup has been confirmed, Portnoy mentioned the show “could” begin near the start of the college football season in late August.

Finally, the announcement from Barstool and FOX Sports comes just days after the network shook up FS1’s weekday lineup. Earlier this week, FOX Sports canceled three programs—Breakfast Ball, The Facility, and Speak—with no word yet from the network on what will replace The Facility or Speak.

To watch Portnoy’s interview on Fox & friends, see below.

Barrett Media produces daily content on the music, news, and sports media industries. To stay updated, sign up for our newsletters and get the latest information delivered straight to your inbox.

Cam Newton Offers Advice To Cancelled FS1 Talent: “Start Your Own”

BSM Staff
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Cam Newton Offers Advice To Cancelled FS1 Talent: “Start Your Own”

It’s been a wild week for FOX Sports, as they began the week by making news through the cancellation of three weekday programs on FS1, and ended it by announcing a partnership with Barstool Sports. While much of the focus has been on how the new partnership with the digital media giant will function, there are still plenty of unanswered questions regarding the departing talents from Breakfast Ball, The Facility, and Speak.

Former NFL quarterback Cam Newton addressed the news of the cancelled FS1 programs and offered insight and advice for those athletes now left without work at FOX Sports.

“Start your own. We were before our time. Now it’s time for everybody to get in line, because at this at this point, it’s just like,’Yo bro,’ we’ve been trying to tell y’all,” shared Newton on his 4th And 1 podcast. “I’m not going to be the one that’s going to kick you while you’re down. What I am going to do is, come one, come all. Hear ye, hear ye.”

Moreover, Newton referenced the time when he was first establishing his own brand and content platforms. He noted that he was the butt of many jokes as he attempted to break into the digital space. However, with his platform now firmly in motion after years of hard work and dedication, Newton is offering candid advice to those recently released by FS1.

“Emmanuel Acho, Joy Taylor. Good, beautiful people. LeSean McCoy, Paul Pierce, Michael Irvin, Keyshawn [Johnson]. The truth, all y’all. Start your own, and some of you are already doing it. But now lean in,” said Newton. “They did it on someone else’s platform, so now you’re disposable to them.”

Additionally, when discussing the remaining talent at FS1, Newton said Colin Cowherd is “bulletproof” due to his business arrangements with The Volume and Shannon Sharpe. He also added that if given the choice, he would prefer to hear NBA discussions from Paul Pierce over Chris Broussard.

Newton went on to highlight the significant amount of time and personal investment he has made into his content creation company. He encouraged former athletes to consider taking a similar path instead of relying solely on traditional network opportunities.

“Everybody, athlete, non-athlete. Understand this. Use what you have and leverage it for your own,” explained Newton. “When I got done playing in the NFL, and I knew it was over, I had to ask myself this question. How can I monetize my life? This is no slight to nobody that I just mentioned. It’s just get on the wave, because content ain’t going nowhere.”

Barrett Media produces daily content on the music, news, and sports media industries. To stay updated, sign up for our newsletters and get the latest information delivered straight to your inbox.

Fox News’ Jesse Watters Issues Apology to Gavin Newsom After Lawsuit Launched

BNM Staff
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Fox News’ Jesse Watters Issues Apology to Gavin Newsom After Lawsuit Launched

In June, Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA) launched a defamation lawsuit aimed at Fox News and host Jesse Watters for what he labeled as lies shared by the network. On Thursday, Watters addressed those claims.

Newsom previously claimed that Fox News lied about his statements relating to his communication with President Donald Trump amidst the ICE protests happening in Los Angeles last month. Newsom claims he spoke with President Trump on June 7th, about one day before more than 2,000 California National Guard members were deployed in Los Angeles to quell anti-ICE riots in the city. On June 10th, however, Trump claimed he had spoken with Newsom “a day ago”, which insinuated that he had spoken with the governor the day 700 U.S. Marines were sent to Los Angeles, which Newsom refuted.

In response, however, Jesse Watters alleged that Newsom had lied in his statements. “Why would Newsom lie and claim Trump never called him?” he said on the network.

Lawyers for the governor argue that Watters’ comments meet the legal standard for defamation and could have been harmful to Newsom’s reputation with voters. They filed a lawsuit seeking a symbolic $787.5 million from the network, the same figure it paid Dominion Voting Systems to settle a lawsuit about the validity of the 2020 presidential election.

After the lawsuit, Gavin Newsom said he would gladly accept an apology from Jesse Watters for what he viewed as incorrect statements.

On Thursday’s episode of Jesse Watters Primetime, the Fox News host did apologize for his statements but was rather sarcastic in his delivery.

“We thought the dispute was about whether there had been a call at all, not when,” Watters began. “We thought that the governor was clear when he said — without qualification — that there was no call.

“Now, Newsom’s telling us what was in his head when he wrote the tweet. He didn’t deceive anybody on purpose, so I’m sorry. He wasn’t lying, he was just confusing and unclear. Next time, Governor, why don’t you just say what you mean?”

Watters added that he had offered Newsom the chance to appear on his show to “talk it out, man to man” but that the California governor had declined that offer.

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Townsquare Cancels Licenses for Two Quad Cities Stations

BMM Staff
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Townsquare Cancels Licenses for Two Quad Cities Stations

Townsquare Media has permanently shut down KBOB (1170 AM) and its associated FM translator K281DB (104.1) in Davenport, filing cancellation requests for both signals with the FCC on July 14.

The move comes roughly three months after the stations went off the air. Townsquare did not explain the decision, though earlier FCC filings cited economic pressures when requesting temporary authority to remain off the air in March.

KBOB was the sole AM outlet in Townsquare’s Quad Cities portfolio. Its FM translator operated under an AM revitalization condition requiring it to simulcast KBOB exclusively.

The 1170 facility transmitted at 1 kW around the clock, using a four-tower daytime and six-tower nighttime directional pattern. The station’s history dates back nearly eight decades, debuting in 1946 as KSTT on 750 kHz before relocating to its longtime frequency of 1170 kHz in 1951.

Over the years, the station cycled through multiple identities and formats. KSTT was a major Top 40 outlet during the peak of AM radio. Launching the careers of many, including Spike O’Dell, who went on to WGN in Chicago.

Later call signs included KKZX and KJOC, the latter of which was tied to a sports format in the 1990s. In 2014, the KJOC calls migrated to FM, and 1170 adopted KBOB, a brand previously associated with local FM frequencies. Its most recent programming featured ESPN Radio.

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Todd Starnes to Launch Morning Show on The Mighty 990 KWAM

BNM Staff
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Todd Starnes to Launch Morning Show on The Mighty 990 KWAM

The Mighty 990 KWAM has been in search of a new morning host after the exit of Ben Deeter in early May of this year. It didn’t have to look far for a new host, with owner Todd Starnes taking over the daypart.

Starnes Country will begin on Wednesday, July 23rd. The new program will begin at 7 AM on the Memphis news/talk station that Starnes purchased in 2020. The Starnes Country brand does have history, as it was the name of the show hosted by Todd Starnes when he helmed a program on the FOX Nation streaming platform.

“Starnes Country is a fresh new way to look at Memphis and the Mid-South,” Starnes said about the new show. Conversations with top newsmakers. Holding our elected leaders accountable. And always celebrating what makes our city great.”

He added that local news will be handled by Jim Miller, local traffic updates will be helmed by “Commander Chuck” and Laura Huckabee will serve as the show’s chief meteorologist.

After Deeter’s departure, The Mighty 990 KWAM had been running The Chris Stigall Show from Salem Radio Network in the morning daypart.

In addition to his new morning show, Starnes will continue to host his nationally syndicated midday program — The Todd Starnes Show — as well as his streaming program for Newsmax.

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News Media Reacts to Wall Street Journal Story Linking Donald Trump to Jeffrey Epstein

BNM Staff
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News Media Reacts to Wall Street Journal Story Linking Donald Trump to Jeffrey Epstein

On Thursday evening, The Wall Street Journal released a report that Donald Trump was one of several high-profile figures to send lewd messages to Jeffrey Epstein on his birthday.

The Wall Street Journal report claims that Trump sent Epstein a letter with a naked woman drawn around the outside of his message that included an “imaginary conversation” between the two.

After the report surfaced, many in the news media reacted. Some questioned the validity of the story, wondering why a supposed 25-year-old letter was just now coming to light. Meanwhile, others argued that it showed a definitive link between the two.

Some even went as far as to show screenshots of their cancellation of their subscriptions to The Wall Street Journal after it published the piece about Donald Trump and Jeffrey Epstein.

Additionally, Vice President JD Vance weighed in on the story, stating that it was “complete and utter bullshit.” He added that the White House was never shown the letter in advance of the story’s publication.

That would appear to fly in the face of statements made on Truth Social by Donald Trump, who said he had informed The Wall Street Journal that he would sue the publication if it printed the story. He later claimed that he would, in fact, sue the outlet, along with parent company News Corp. and it’s owner, Rupert Murdoch.

After Vance’s statement was made public on the X platform, news media members reacted to that, as well.

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ESPY Awards Viewership Down 17% From Last Year

BSM Staff
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ESPY Awards Viewership Down 17% From Last Year

While there was much debate about Shane Gillis’ performance as host of the ESPY Awards on Wednesday night, his presence did not exactly draw a new audience for the annual sports awards show. According to Sports Media Watch, the 2024 ESPY Awards drew modest ratings once again, continuing a trend of diminished viewership in recent years.

Airing Wednesday night on ABC, the annual sports award show averaged a 1.3 rating and 2.18 million viewers. The figure marks one of the lowest totals in the event’s history, outperforming only the COVID-impacted broadcasts of 2020 and 2021 and drawing the lowest viewership since 2011. It was also the second-lowest non-pandemic viewership since the event’s inception, trailing only the 1998 edition of the annual awards show which was hosted by Norm Macdonald (2.10 million).

Compared to last year’s telecast, which aired on a Thursday night and faced a delay due to an ABC News special report, the 2025 ESPYs saw a 22% drop in ratings and a 17% dip in total viewership. Even when stacked against 2022 — the last time the ESPYs aired in its traditional post-MLB All-Star Game slot — the show still lost ground, down a tick in ratings and off 7% in total viewers from 2.3 million.

Since returning to its pre-pandemic summer slot in 2022, the ESPYs have hovered around the 2 million viewer mark consistently. That’s a significant falloff from the five-year stretch preceding the pandemic, when the show consistently averaged over 3 million viewers, including nearly 8 million during its ABC debut in 2013 and 3.9 million in 2019.

The decline places the ESPYs behind other major sports award presentations in terms of viewership. The NFL Honors, which aired in February across FOX and NFL Network, drew 2.3 million viewers. Meanwhile, ESPN’s Heisman Trophy Presentation last December reached 2.52 million viewers.

This year’s ESPY awards were held at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. Gillis opening monologue drew much praise and criticism as reactions were mixed to the injection of political humor and sports intersected drawing few laughs from the in-person audience.

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Fox News Radio Adds Angelo Bavaro as Anchor

BNM Staff
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Fox News Radio Adds Angelo Bavaro as Anchor

Former WTIC-TV anchor Angelo Bavaro is trading in the bright lights of television for radio, as he’ll join Fox News Radio as a new anchor.

Bavaro departed the Hartford television station in May. He spent five years working at the station.

He has since announced his intention to join Fox News Radio, where he’ll work as an anchor based in New York. Primarily, he’ll be heard on Fox News Headlines 24/7, the network’s channel on SiriusXM.

“Thanks to everyone who’s reached out with well wishes as I start a new chapter,” Bavaro wrote in a post on social media announcing the move.

Fox News Headlines 24/7 is heard on SiriusXM Channel 115. It has been exclusively heard on the satellite broadcaster since 2015.

Barrett Media produces daily content on the music, news, and sports media industries. To stay updated, sign up for our newsletters and get the latest information delivered straight to your inbox.

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