After finishing 2015 by averaging a shockingly low 7,000 primetime viewers in the 25-54 demo, cable news channel Al Jazeera America will cease operation by April 30, 2016, channel executives said Wednesday.
The stateside extension of the Qatar-based Al Jazeera launched in 2013, replacing Al Gore’s Current TV with a roster of big-name recruits such as ABC News stalwart Kate O’Brian, who served as its president. But despite high hopes, AJAM never caught on with American viewers nor the media in general. The most public attention it received was when a story broke last year regarding the dismissal of AJAM CEO Ehab Al Shihabi, who left amid accusations of sexism and anti-Semitism.
The channel never recovered from its internal strife, not even following a December documentary that accused several athletes, including Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning, of using performance-enhancing drugs. The documentary caused a mild stir among sports journalists, but was also met with skepticism, defamation lawsuits from MLB players Ryan Howard and Ryan Zimmerman, and did little to improve ratings.
In a Wednesday statement, Al Jazeera Media Network announced it will be expanding its digital offerings, such as the online platform AJ+, in order to broaden its multi-platform presence in the United States.
“By expanding its digital content and distribution services to now include the US, the Network will be better positioned to innovate and compete in an overwhelmingly digital world to serve today’s 24-hour digitally focused audience,” said the statement.
Meanwhile, Herring Networks—parent company of One America News (OAN) Network—has expressed interest in purchasing the shuttered AJAM in order to capitalize on its carriage on cable systems. According to Nielsen, Al Jazeera has 60.8 million subscribers to which Herring hopes to deliver OAN.
Brief Take: Viewers are consuming less and less news via broadcast television. Al Jazeera America should have seen the writing on the wall well before it launched a new cable channel in 2013.
Read more at The Hollywood Reporter and Multichannel News.
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