Hannity & Colmes
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Hannity & Colmes | |
|---|---|
 Former Title card for Hannity & Colmes |
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| Genre | Political program |
| Presented by | Sean Hannity (conservative) Alan Colmes (liberal[1]) |
| Country of origin |  United States |
| Language(s) | English |
| Production | |
| Location(s) | New York City |
| Camera setup | Multi-camera |
| Running time | 60 minutes |
| Broadcast | |
| Original channel | Fox News Channel |
| Picture format | 480i NTSC |
| Original run | October 6, 1996 – present |
| External links | |
| Official website | |
| IMDb profile | |
| TV.com summary | |
Hannity & Colmes is an American television show on Fox News Channel, hosted by Sean Hannity[2] and Alan Colmes,[3] who respectively present a right-wing and left-wing perspective. It normally airs at 9:00 PM EST following The O'Reilly Factor.
Additionally, the show features debate about soft news stories occurring, such as the 2006 Duke University lacrosse team scandal or the death of Anna Nicole Smith, or one-on-one interviews with politicians, commonly with the host who most closely shared the guest's political ideology. The show's format resembles a former CNN show called Crossfire, which had hosts on both the left and right.
It was announced on November 24, 2008 that Alan Colmes would leave the show at the end of the year. The future of the program is unknown.[4][5] FOX News Chairman & Chief Executive Officer Roger Ailes added, “Alan is one of the key reasons why FOX News has been such a remarkable success. We’re sad to see him leave the program but we look forward to his ongoing contributions to the network.” [1][2]
Contents |
[edit] Guest hosts
When either Hannity or Colmes are unavailable to do the broadcast a guest host of the missing host's political ideology is used. Usually both Colmes and Hannity will not be missing at the same time.
[edit] Guest hosts for Colmes
[edit] Guest hosts for Hannity
- Alphonse D'Amato
- Monica Crowley
- Newt Gingrich
- Laura Ingraham
- Rich Lowry
- Oliver North
- Michael S. Steele
- Mark Steyn
- Cal Thomas
[edit] Reception
The show has both been praised and criticized by the viewers and organization for the concept and production of the show.
Alan Colmes is touted by Fox as "a hard-hitting liberal", but he admitted to USA Today that "I'm quite moderate".[6] He has sometimes taken more conservative positions, such as supporting Rudy Giuliani for mayor of New York City. He has been characterized by several newspapers as being Hannity's "sidekick".[7] Liberal commentator Al Franken lambasted Colmes in his book, Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them, accusing him of refusing to ask tough questions during debates and neglecting to challenge erroneous claims made by Hannity or his guests.[7] Some critics have also questioned whether or not both hosts receive equal time to interview guests.[7] Some of Colmes' liberal critics have in recent months praised him, however, such as commentators at Media Matters for America. He has recently begun citing their reports in his confrontations with some of his conservative guests on the program.[8][9]
A study by Media Matters for America, a liberal group that is frequently critical of the Fox News Channel, conducted through the first two months of 2006 found that the number of conservatives and Republicans brought on as guests outnumbered the number of liberals and Democrats by margins of 72%–28% in January, and 67%–33% in February. Of the solo interviews that are conducted on the show, 80% of the interviews are conducted with conservatives and Republicans.[10]
[edit] Ratings
Hannity & Colmes is the only FNC program which has remained in the same timeslot for 12 years, catapulting to number one in 2003 and never relinquishing the top spot. The second highest-rated program in cable news behind only The O’Reilly Factor, Hannity & Colmes averaged 3.3 million viewers nightly for the Nielsen month of October 2008 and is poised to mark 60 consecutive months at number one at the end of November 2008. [3]
[edit] References
- ^ Hannity & Colmes - SourceWatch
- ^ "Sean Hannity Bio". FoxNews.com. Retrieved on 2007-10-14.
- ^ Alan Colmes' Bio, FoxNews.com October 10, 2002
- ^ http://newsticker.welt.de/index.php?channel=fin&module=smarthouse&id=814863
- ^ http://www.mediabistro.com/tvnewser/fnc/fox_news_prime_time_ac_after_colmes_101633.asp
- ^ Robin, DeRosa (1995-02-01), Tuning in to high-wattage talk show hosts, Gannett Company, Inc., p. LIFE; Pg. 7D, Alan Colmes, "I think I'm quite moderate ... I follow Limbaugh on about 100 stations and I precede other conservatives, so I may be the only person giving a different point of view."
- ^ a b c An Aggressive Conservative vs. a "Liberal to be Determined" by Steve Rendall, Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting, November/December 2003
- ^ Colmes noted missed opportunities to eliminate Zarqawi prior to war that went unreported by media after terrorist's death, Media Matters for America
- ^ Colmes confronted Williams with inconsistent statements on No Child Left Behind, Media Matters for America
- ^ Unfair & imbalanced: Republicans and conservatives dominate on Hannity & Colmes, Media Matters for America
[edit] External links
- Official Hannity & Colmes website
- News Hounds: Hannity & Colmes
- "An Aggressive Conservative vs. a 'Liberal to be Determined': The false balance of Hannity & Colmes", Steve Rendall, fair.org, November/December 2003
