Cable news leader Fox News Channel has signed the sector's top Nielsen performer to a new multiyear contract.
As expected, Bill O'Reilly has renewed his pact with Fox News Channel, ensuring that The O'Reilly Factor will continue to anchor the service's primetime lineup. Financial terms were not disclosed. O'Reilly's contract was set to expire at year-end.
News began surfacing last week that both O'Reilly -- whose show has set the cable news pace in the 8 p.m. hour for 136 months and been the top show in cable news for 125 consecutive months -- and Sean Hannity, were nearing contract renewals. Both men have been with FNC since its launch in 1996 and have contributed significantly to its being the cable news Nielsen leader for over a decade.
"Bill's immense talent, intellect and raw convictions are an extremely rare combination in television and exemplify why The O'Reilly Factor has been the number one program in cable news for more than a decade," said Fox News chairman and CEO Roger Ailes in announcing the new contract. "He is a tremendous force in the business and has helped to make Fox News the success story it is today."
