A new report by right-leaning outlet Mediate says former Fox News star Bill O’Reilly is significantly expanding his website Billoreilly.com, adding several journalists and at least one producer to help turn the site into “a major enterprise.”
According to Mediaite’s report, published Friday afternoon, a Fox News Channel producer resigned from FNC to work for O’Reilly’s website, specifically a video project. According to the report, “broadcast plans” will soon be announced.
In a podcast airing on Billoreilly.com on April 24, O’Reilly said he plans to air progressively longer podcasts on Billoreilly.com that will eventually become a full news program. On April 27, in a podcast titled “O’Reilly Lays out Plans for the Future in Last Free Podcast,” O’Reilly said his website will launch a video news program and “maybe go into some other networks as well.”
It appears those plans could be developing in a way that’s more advanced than many expected.
Since being fired from Fox News in April, rumors have swirled over where O’Reilly might end up, with many suggesting the host could join one of a few existing conservative rivals to Fox News. But the latest report by Mediaite is not just another O’Reilly rumor. Mediate was able to reach O’Reilly, who told Mediaite, “We are assembling a team of journalists and are considering a number of options as Billoreilly.com is quickly developing into a major enterprise.”
On Thursday, Variety reported conservative news network One America News is rumored to be “eagerly courting” O’Reilly. OAN CEO Robert Herring tweeted on Wednesday a cryptic message suggesting O’Reilly could be coming to the network.
Bill O’Reilly coming to One America News? #BillOReilly #OANN
— Robert Herring (@RobHerring) June 15, 2017
Herring later confirmed with Variety he is interested in hiring O’Reilly, but said he “can’t tell [Variety] anything that’s going on yet.”
[graphiq id="3WPkdg17aZv" title="Bill O'Reilly" width="500" height="750" url="https://sw.graphiq.com/w/3WPkdg17aZv" frozen="true"]
With O’Reilly building a team of journalists to work with him at Billoreilly.com, it seems unlikely O’Reilly will be joining any one network, but it remains possible the former star could be aired on multiple networks/websites, which could explain why rumors of his involvement with other networks have persisted alongside his efforts to build a staff at his personal media website.
O’Reilly continues to join Glenn Beck on “The Glenn Beck Program” every Friday. You can listen to his latest appearance here.
Justin Haskins
