PBS show jumps to Fox News

A PBS public affairs program featuring politically conservative viewpoints is moving to Fox News after the show struggled to get airtime on local public television stations, according to its producers.

The “Journal Editorial Report,” a half-hour show hosted by Wall Street Journal Editorial Page Editor Paul Gigot and featuring members of the newspaper’s editorial board, will air for the last time on PBS on Friday. In January, the program will begin running on the cable news channel on Saturdays, in a time slot to be determined, Fox officials said Wednesday. Fox News executives said they approached Gigot about bringing his show to the network several months ago.

“It’s a very good addition to our line-up,” said programming executive Bill Shine. “It adds to our strength.”

The difficulties in getting airtime on public television contributed to the Journal’s decision to make the change, officials said.

“The Journal decided not to pursue a third season on PBS because

PBS officials disputed that, saying the program was carried on an average of 229 stations, including KCET at 11:30 a.m. Saturdays, during any given week, reaching 83% of U.S. households. Officials expressed regret that the Journal’s editorial board was taking its program elsewhere.

PBS began carrying the “Journal Editorial Report” in September 2004 after pressure from Kenneth Y. Tomlinson, then the chairman of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, who pushed for the program as a counterweight to “Now,” then hosted by liberal commentator Bill Moyers.

After the “Journal Editorial Report” was on the air, not all local stations opted to air it, producers said. Twelve stations in the top 30 markets did not run the show at all or put it on in the middle of the night.

“I believe this was a concerted campaign to destroy the program on ideological grounds,” said Paul Friedman, the program’s executive producer.