Donald Trump escalated his feud with Fox News on Monday, October 19, urging his followers on Truth Social to ditch the conservative network and watch his Kansas rally on the right-wing rival Right Side Broadcasting Network (RSBN) instead.
"Fox spends more time defending Dumocrats, and putting on their views versus their Republican opponent, than at any time in the History of FoxNews. It's ridiculous! FoxNews is trying too hard to be Politically Correct! Watch my big Kansas Rally today on RSBN. Great early coverage!" Trump wrote early Monday morning.
The Kansas rally and the midterm push
The post was aimed at steering viewers to Trump's rally in Wichita (Park City), Kansas, at 6 PM CDT on Monday, where he campaigned for Senator Roger Marshall's reelection bid. Trump has been touring battleground states with a message urging Republicans to "pretend I am on the ballot" in the November 3 midterms — just 15 days away.
Why the feud is boiling over
The Trump–Fox tension has been escalating for months. On October 4, Trump said Fox failed to adequately cover his rallies in Ohio, Alabama, Texas, and Oklahoma, warning supporters would "stop watching" the network. On October 6, he objected to Fox interviews with Michigan Democrat Abdul El-Sayed and independent Nebraska candidate Dan Osborn, calling them soft and asking "Why are they putting these people on our television networks?"
In September, Trump complained that Fox regularly featured Democratic leaders Chuck Schumer and Hakeem Jeffries and commentator Jessica Tarlov, claiming they got more airtime than pro-Republican guests. In August, he criticized Fox's reporting on Iran-related military actions and named specific journalists he disliked.
The roots run deeper: the 2015 Republican primary clash with anchor Megyn Kelly, Fox's early 2020 call of Arizona for Biden on election night, and the network's $787.5 million Dominion defamation settlement in 2023. Fox News had not issued a public response as of Monday afternoon.
What is RSBN?
Right Side Broadcasting Network was founded in 2015 by Joe Seales and built its following by airing Trump rallies and speeches in full, with pre-event crowd interviews. It has faced its own controversies: in 2017 it apologized after a host said he wanted the people who run CNN "arrested and deported or hanged," and YouTube suspended the network at least twice in 2021 over aired Trump speeches, citing election misinformation rules. Trump has praised RSBN's coverage in recent weeks for focusing on his supporters.
The stakes cut both ways: Fox generates most of its revenue from carriage fees and advertising tied to viewership, and its morning and primetime ratings have historically dwarfed RSBN's streaming audience. A midterm blitz through Texas, Oklahoma, Ohio, Kentucky, and Georgia gives Trump the platform to test how much of his audience he can move.
Sources: StateLineDaily | Anadolu Agency | The Crosswire Daily | RealityTea
Watch: YouTube: latest coverage of the Trump–Fox News feud
Music in this post's reel: Kevin MacLeod - Hitman (incompetech.com), licensed under CC BY 3.0