Biden bypasses Fox News for Super Bowl interview on Fox Soul

President Biden will sit down for an interview with Fox Corp.‘s streaming service aimed toward Black viewers, as a substitute of doing a standard pre-Tremendous Bowl chat with a information anchor.

For this yr’s recreation, airing Sunday on the Fox broadcast community, that project would usually have gone to Fox Information, which is lower than hospitable to Biden throughout most of its daytime protection – though administration officers will seem – and downright hostile in prime time when its conservative opinion hosts pound away at his administration.

Nonetheless, the top-rated cable information community does attain a considerable variety of viewers who determine as Democrats and political independents, in response to Nielsen information.

The White Home rejected a request from Fox Information, which might have assigned “Fox Information Sunday” anchor Shannon Bream or Bret Baier of “Particular Report” to deal with the interview, in response to a community consultant. On Thursday, the administration reached out to Fox Soul, a streaming service for Black viewers, which presumably will supply a friendlier setting. The White Home has not confirmed Biden’s participation.

Launched in 2020, Fox Soul is a free, ad-supported service that may be watched on any internet-connected gadget.

A consultant for Fox Corp. mentioned Friday the interview will probably be carried out by actress Vivica A. Fox, who hosts two reveals on Fox Soul, and Mike Hill from Fox Sports activities. The sit-down is being produced by James DuBose, the overall supervisor of Fox Soul.

The trio arrived in Washington for the interview on Friday. However the firm has not decided whether or not the taped sit-down will air on the pregame present forward of the telecast of Tremendous Bowl LVII pitting the Kansas Metropolis Chiefs towards the Philadelphia Eagles.

A presidential interview throughout the pregame present has change into a latest custom for the community that carries the Tremendous Bowl. The setting supplied the uncommon circumstance the place Barack Obama sat down with Fox Information when the mother or father firm’s broadcast community carried the sport.

However former President Donald Trump skipped the chance to take a seat with NBC Information in 2018, the season during which the NFL was in turmoil over gamers’ on-field social justice protests. He appeared with Fox Information host Sean Hannity, who was a staunch advocate for his administration, in 2020, and Invoice O’Reilly in 2017. Trump additionally sat with CBS Information anchor Margaret Brennan in 2019.