New York — RUPERT MURDOCH and Roger Ailes had just announced their intention to create a 24-hour cable news channel from scratch, vowing to launch within a year and take on industry leader CNN. As they walked out of the news conference in the fledging network's Sixth Avenue headquarters in January 1996, Ailes turned to the News Corp. chairman.
"I said, 'Rupert, they're laughing at us,' " the Fox News chairman and chief executive recalled in a recent interview. "And he said, 'They always laugh in the beginning. That never bothers me.' "
Indeed, the upstart cable channel -- which CNN founder Ted Turner once boasted he would squash "like a bug" -- seemed to thrive on the skepticism about its endeavor. Casting itself as a "fair and balanced" alternative to the mainstream media, Fox News Channel surpassed CNN in the ratings in January 2002 and since then has been the undisputed cable news champion, regularly amassing an audience more than double the size of its competitors'.
This year, there are signs that its seemingly unstoppable rise may be stalling, as for the first time it has experienced significant audience erosion. But Fox News' viewership still far outstrips that of its competitors and as the channel celebrates its 10th anniversary this weekend, it is one of the top 10 cable networks. Few are joking now about the viability of a network the New York Times once dubbed Ailes' "imaginary friend."
Proving the doubters wrong hasn't softened the channel's underdog attitude -- or the ambition of its leader.
Ailes, a canny former GOP political operative whose competitive, pugilistic spirit sets the network's tone, now has his sights set on a new goal.
"I want the Fox News Channel to be the dominant source of news in America and around the world," he said matter-of-factly, sitting jacketless in his spacious glass-walled office, his hands folded neatly over his portly frame.
Aiming for dominance is a natural move for Ailes, a communications wizard whose early recognition of television's potency helped Richard Nixon, Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush use the medium to their advantage. Since moving into the cable news industry, Ailes has garnered a reputation as a hard-charging boss who is fiercely loyal and unforgiving when crossed. (When Paula Zahn left Fox News for CNN in 2001, he retorted that a "dead raccoon" would have gotten better ratings than her program.)
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SHORING UP RATINGS
