Why isn't Fox News challenged by a legitimate competitor?

[GOP Congress]

This is a serious question. I've actually talked to Noel Sheperd of Newsbusted.org, and even he couldn't give me a good reason.

As everyone knows, Fox News runs roughshod over the other two "news" programs, MSNBC and CNN, most of the time getting 60-80% of the market. This is, frankly, an anomaly that I cannot understand. Surely someone must be looking at Fox's business model, which is ludicrously simple: Put out news that is not filtered or biased, and provide at least a plurality of conservative or libertarian leaning opinion shows (Hannity, Beck, O'Reilly), and variety shows that are not totally lib-fests (Fox and Friends, Redeye).

Looking at talk radio, over 90% of all shows would be considered following the philosophy that most identify with Fox, while the less than 10% of shows emulate MSNBC or CNN. This is strictly a measure of profitability. Air America tanked bigger than Stuttgart.

I mean, seriously, from a profitability factor, if I were a stakeholder in the media industry, I would look askance at operations like MSNBC and CNN before investing. As a venture capitalist, I'd be putting as MUCH EFFORT as I could to exploring a potential competitor to Fox using its own business model.

Basically, I'm asking this question from an economic perspective, not a political angle. And I am a bit puzzled as to why there has never been a serious attempt to emulate or compete against Fox's model.

Any clue as to the big things that I'm apparently missing? I know if I won a huge lotto and had an extra 100 million, Fox would be looking at some serious competition within a few months.

[thelaughingman]

This is why liberals favor legislation that violates the 1st Amendment protection of freedom of the press.

[DefiantSix]

It's damn near genetic.  Moonbat thought process is so primed with failure, that they're constitutionally incapable of leaving the Truth - any Truth - un-spun.  They don't know how, and can't imagine that someone in their world doesn't do it ("Fox lies", anybody?).  And so, believing every moral thing is relative and ethics are driven by the situation in which they're encountered, that the ends justify whatever means are necessary, and that the other side is doing it, so you'd better, too, they thus convince themselves - once again - that it is morally right for them to do so.

[JohnnyReb]

legitimate and liberal.....like oil and water.

[FreeBorn]

That would require them to be fair and balanced, ain't gonna happen.

[Eupher]

It might just be me, but I detect a faint undertone of anger, most especially in MSNBC and perhaps less so, but still palpable, in CNN.

It's this indignant sense of self-righteousness that tends to cut through the faux charade of "balanced" news presentation that simply isn't there.

That said, Fox has its moments of bland incredulity at some of the really wild batshit crazy stuff that permeates the news, and a lot of that hits home with regular people.

This stuff is visceral. I'm not sure you can catch it in a business model or plan. But it resonates with a lot of people and that is why Fox runs roughshod over the competition.

[GOP Congress]

It might just be me, but I detect a faint undertone of anger, most especially in MSNBC and perhaps less so, but still palpable, in CNN.

It's this indignant sense of self-righteousness that tends to cut through the faux charade of "balanced" news presentation that simply isn't there.

That said, Fox has its moments of bland incredulity at some of the really wild batshit crazy stuff that permeates the news, and a lot of that hits home with regular people.

This stuff is visceral. I'm not sure you can catch it in a business model or plan. But it resonates with a lot of people and that is why Fox runs roughshod over the competition.

On the surface, I cannot accept that it cannot be strategized on a business plan. One could ostensibly take the Fox model and insert lower-tier conservatives in their spots, that network would still do better than MSNBC / CNN while finishing second to Fox, at least initially. Obviously, that is a simple solution; I'm sure more seasoned professionals such as Brent Bozell and others would be able to come up with something much more substantial.

There may be multiple reasons working in tangent to prevent such a competition, but again, I need to identify them.