In a move that could presage the launch of its much-talked-about business service, Fox News Channel hired Alexis Glick as director of business news.
Glick, who most recently served as a correspondent and co-host of the third hour of NBC’s Today, will report to Fox News vice president and managing editor of business news Neil Cavuto.
In making the announcement, Fox News chairman and CEO Roger Ailes said in a prepared statement: “Neil made a great decision in tapping Alexis for this role. After creating the top five business programs in cable news, I expect he and Alexis will work together to create an even stronger business unit and prepare for the launch of a possible business channel. While we are not announcing the launch of such a channel, hiring Alexis enables us to be prepared if plans move forward.”
Further, the release indicated that if Fox News secures the necessary distribution to launch a business channel, Glick would also serve in an on-air capacity.
Talk about Fox News launching a business service has abounded over the past couple of years. In June, Ailes told UBS Warburg analyst Aryeh Bourkoff that the target launch for such a financial service would be in mid-2007 -- provided the necessary distribution could be obtained.
In the meantime, Fox News continues to negotiate renewals of the 10-year pacts it inked in 1996 that expire at year-end with DirecTV, Comcast and Cablevision Systems.
Glick’s resume also includes stints as senior trading correspondent for CNBC, where she reported from the floor of the New York Stock Exchange for the network’s Squawk Box, and as executive director at Morgan Stanley, where she headed the firm’s NYSE floor operations.
