Sirius, Fox News Relationship Gets Rockier

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Rumblings continued over the possible departure of Fox News from the Sirius dial, this time with some not-so-subtle hints. "As of January 1st, Sirius Radio will also no longer air any Fox News programming," a notice on the website of Fox News personality Tony Snow indicated. "Remember, you can still hear the show on your local radio station or on XM Radio channel 165." The sites of other hosts, including Alan Colmes, feature a similar message. The Sirius/Fox News contract is scheduled to end by the end of the year, and it appears that renewal discussions are in serious trouble. "Please let Sirius know how you feel about this change," the notice implores.


A non-renewal would follow a contentious episode between the two parties. The conflict started when a scheduled segment on Sirius featuring Fox News commentator Alan Colmes was replaced by Stephanie Miller on two occasions, causing Fox News to pull its feed. In an ad-hoc recovery, Sirius began using a cable TV-based feed to keep the news stream going, though the situation was eventually repaired. Meanwhile, XM Satellite Radio has been expanding its relationship with Fox News, and will launch a channel dedicated to analysis and commentary from personalities Bill O'Reilly, Tony Snow, John Gibson, and Alan Colmes. That will complement its existing Fox News feed.

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