• Is Roger Ailes more power­ful than Rupert Murdoch? We know that’s a contro­ver­sial state­ment, but hear us out. The Fox News chief not only made more money than Murdoch himself last year (and put up the kind of numbers that made him deserve the paycheck), but the level of influ­ence the guy wields arguably has a wider reach in politics. It’s something that’s directly affected elections and regularly pushes the news cycle forward. And it makes some members of the Murdoch family (who aren’t Rupert) uncomfortable.

A media icon with massive influence

• Regard­less of whether you like what he is doing, Roger Ailes is one of the most creative talents of his gener­a­tion. He has built a media empire that is capable of driving the conver­sa­tion, and, at times, the polit­i­cal process.
• CNN polit­i­cal analyst David Gergen • Regard­ing the influ­ence of Roger Ailes, who runs Fox News and has since 1996. Ailes got his start with the Nixon campaign and often brings that sort of polit­i­cal experi­ence to the channel, control­ling the conver­sa­tion with pinpoint focus. source

Three events that defined Roger Ailes’ career

• Don’t sell TV short Back in 1967, Ailes, then a producer on “The Mike Douglas Show,” bluntly told Richard Nixon that televi­sion wasn’t a gimmick and he needed to focus on it. His hardnosed response led to a role in the admin­is­tra­tion, the role of which was played up in the book “The Selling of the Presi­dent 1968.” source
• Willie Horton, super­star Ailes is largely respon­si­ble for turning convicted murderer Willie Horton into a house­hold name during the 1988 presi­den­tial election. Horton was released from prison in Massa­chu­setts on Michael Dukakis’ dime, and Horton’s face dominated TV during the era. It also helped to ensure a George H. W. Bush victory. source
• America’s Talking Before the consul­tant started Fox News, Ailes conceived the talk-show-focused MSNBC precur­sor America’s Talking, which had a cult follow­ing (and led to the success of Chris Matthews) but ultimately faltered. In 2009, Fox started using the “America’s Talking” tagline. How ironic. It’s almost like a dart in NBC’s eye. source

Fox News rules the ratings

• eight the number of consecutive years the network has led the cable news ratings roost
• 16% increase in 2009's ratings Fox News had over 2008; crazy part – it wasn't even an election year
• 96% increase in Glenn Beck's ratings after moving to Fox News from Headline News in 2009 source

How much money does Roger Ailes make Fox News?

• $700 million the amount Fox News makes in profit for News Corp. yearly – more than all the other major TV news outlets combined
• $23
  million the amount Fox News head Roger Ailes made last year – which is more than Rupert Murdoch, his boss made last year source

• Too much influ­ence? Some of Rupert Murdoch’s own family members have questioned just how much influ­ence the guy has in the News Corp. corpo­rate food chain. “I am by no means alone within the family or the company in being ashamed and sickened by Roger Ailes’s horren­dous and sustained disre­gard of the journal­is­tic standards that News Corpo­ra­tion, its founder and every other global media business aspires to,” said Matthew Freud, who’s married to Murdoch’s daugh­ter Elisa­beth. source

Could he run for presi­dent? It’s possible

• Friends have suggested he run in 2012. Ailes has influ­ence and knowl­edge so strong that he could realis­ti­cally have a shot if he took his polit­i­cal knowl­edge to the polls. “I have known Roger Ailes for 29 years,” says well-known Repub­li­can pollster Frank Luntz. “No one knows how to win better than Roger.” Ailes denies such claims, but the option’s always open just in case. source

Posted by Ernie Smith • Permalink