The Fox News Channel (FNC) is a United States-based cable and satellite news channel. It is owned by the Fox Entertainment Group, and is a subsidiary of Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation. As of January 2005, it is available to 85 million households in the U.S. and further to viewers internationally, broadcasting primarily out of its New York City studios.
The network was launched on October 7, 1996

History

Outlets

Main article: Fox News Channel programming Television
Like other news networks, Fox News Channel produces a news website featuring the latest coverage of news stories, including video clips from the network's television division, audio clips from Fox News Radio, in addition to columns from the network's assorted television, radio, and online personalities. Introduced in December 1995, the network's website ranks below many other news websites, ranking in the lower teens in the list of top news websites.

Online

Main article: Fox News Radio Radio

Main article: Fox News Channel personalities Personalities
Fox News currently leads the cable news market in the United States, earning higher points ratings than its chief competitors CNN and MSNBC combined by average viewership.

Ratings

Main article: Fox News Channel controversies Controversies
Fox News has been accused of promoting a conservative, right-wing, or Republican point of view at the expense of neutrality.

Accusations of bias
As with many news sources, Fox News executives exert a degree of editorial control over the content of their daily reporting. In the case of Fox News, some of this control comes in the form of daily memos issued by Fox News' Vice President of News, John Moody. Critics of Fox News cite these memos as evidence of a conservative bias in Fox News reporting, and claim that information in these memos duplicates Republican talking points.

Internal memos
In 2003, Penguin Books published Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them: A Fair and Balanced Look at the Right, by comedian and Democratic writer Al Franken. The book criticized a number of persons and institutions, but singled out Fox with allegations of conservative bias. Before the book was released, Fox brought a lawsuit, alleging that the book's subtitle violated Fox's trademark on the promotional phrase "Fair and Balanced." On that basis, Fox moved for a preliminary injunction to block the publication of the book. The United States District Court Judge hearing the case denied the motion, causing Fox to withdraw the suit.
In December 2003, the Independent Media Institute brought a petition before the United States Patent and Trademark Office seeking the cancellation of Fox's trademark of the phrase "Fair & Balanced," on the grounds that is is "notoriously misdescriptive."

Trademark disputes
The channel is available internationally, though its world programming is identical to its American programming (with the exception of Fox News Extra breakfillers), unlike CNN International, which airs regional programming that is almost entirely independent of its U.S. broadcasts.

International transmission
Until early 2002, Fox News replaced US advertisements with e-mails from viewers around the world who liked Fox News, as well as profiles of Fox News anchors, set to music. These were never updated and consisted of a small number of such segments. They, in turn, were replaced with international weather forecasts. In 2006, they replaced the weather segments with 'Fox News Extra' segments, various narrated reports from FOX Reports on a variety of topics. These reports are generally on lighter issues not related to current news events, and the segments are repeated. The segments are introduced by various Fox News anchors (mostly headline segment anchors), who in addition to introducing the segment, thank viewers from a chosen international location for watching Fox News.
When Fox News Extra segments run short, international weather forecasts are shown for the remaining duration of the break.
The Fox News feed in the United Kingdom does not feature Fox News Extra, and instead features break fillers from sister channel Sky News's International Variant. For a short period in 2001, a still of the Fox News logo replaced this other content.

Fox News Extra
In Australia Fox News Channel is broadcast on the three major Pay-TV providers, Austar, Optus Television and Foxtel. Foxtel is 25% owned by News Corporation, and the other two are just rebroadcasters of Foxtel content. The Australian syndication previously featured some local programming, including a John Laws current affairs program in place of "Fox & Friends". Local advertisements are aired in place of every second 'Fox News Extra' segment.

Brazil
On December 14, 2000, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) approved Fox News Canada on behalf of the Global Television Network, for broadcast in Canada. Fox News Canada was to be a domestic Canadian version of Fox News. On December 16, 2004, Rogers Communications became the first Canadian cable or satellite provider to broadcast Fox News, with other companies following suit within the next several weeks.

Canada
In New Zealand, Fox News is broadcast on Channel 92 of pay satellite operator Sky TV's digital platform. It is also broadcast overnight on New Zealand TV channel Prime, owned by Sky. Fox News parent corporation News Corp has a stake in both Sky and Prime.

New Zealand
In Sweden and the other Scandinavian countries, Fox News is broadcast on TV8 for some 16 hours a day, since 2003. Fox News Extra segments replace U.S. advertising. However, in September 2006, Fox News was replaced by German news channel Deutsche Welle. This change resulted in Fox News losing all of its coverage in Sweden.

Scandinavia
Fox News is also carried in the United Kingdom and Ireland by the British Sky Broadcasting (BSkyB) satellite television network (Sky Digital), in which News Corporation (the largest shareholder) holds a 38 percent stake. It is a sister channel to BSkyB's Sky News, which is more popular in the region and does not carry any such controversy. Fox News is usually broadcast as a VideoGuard encrypted channel but during major news stories it may be simulcast on Sky Active, which is free to air. A fault in certain Pace Micro Sky Digibox receivers, notably the DS-430N which was Sky's default issue for some years, has left them able to decrypt the channel with no active subscription card since March 1, 2006; although no reason is known as to why. As of September 2006 the channel has carried UK specific advertising, along with headlines and weather provided by Sky News between its breaks. These run under the brand of Fox News International.

United Kingdom and Ireland
Fox News Channel is also carried in more than 40 countries. Although service to Japan stopped in the summer of 2003, it can still be seen on Americable (distributor for American bases),

Argentina
Bahamas
Barbados
Belize
Bermuda
Cambodia
Cayman Islands
Chile
Colombia
Costa Rica
Denmark
Dominican Republic
Finland
Grenada
Guam
Guatemala
Hong Kong
Iceland
Indonesia
Israel
Italy
Jamaica
Kazakhstan
Kyrgyzstan
Macau
Malaysia
Maldives
Mexico
Netherlands
New Zealand
Nigeria
Norway
Pakistan
Palau
Panama
Peru
Papua New Guinea
Philippines
Portugal
Russia
Saudi Arabia
Singapore
Saint Kitts
Saint Lucia
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
Spain
Slovenia
Thailand
Trinidad and Tobago
Tonga
United Arab Emirates
Venezuela Archive and licensing

Collins, Scott. Crazy Like a Fox: The Inside Story of How Fox News Beat CNN. ISBN 1-59184-029-5. 
FNC Ratings Soar as War in Lebanon Rages. MediaWeek.
"Fox's Smith tops cable news ranks in ratings", Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel. 
"Fox Factor", USA Today. 
Q2 '06: FNC #9 On All Of Cable TV. Media Bistro.