By RASHAD ROLLE
Tribune Staff Reporter
rrolle@tribunemedia.net
CABLE Bahamas has removed Fox News from its channel package and some Bahamians who like the network's infamous brand of conservative news are not pleased.
Several older male viewers called The Tribune yesterday to question and complain about the change, saying they will switch to satellite television or a rival provider. Some viewers also expressed their dissatisfaction on social media.
Cable Bahamas announced in a newspaper ad published yesterday that Fox News has been replaced with One American News Network (OANN), which it branded the fastest growing conservative outlet in the US.
Fees
David Burrows, the company's vice president of marketing, said: "Some content providers have been significantly increasing the fees they charge us for their programmes. When the fees become too high in relation to the viewership numbers, we must take action to search for alternative content and OANN reflects this position."
This hasn't gone over well with faithful Fox News watchers who contacted this newspaper yesterday.
Enrico Garzaroli, proprietor of Graycliff, is one of them.
"It is gross, gross stupidity from their side," Mr Garzaroli told The Tribune. "Nobody can interfere or censor the news in a democratic country, this is not a communist country. It is a blatant violation of freedom of speech and expression."
He said he will switch to satellite television or BTC's television service as Cable Bahamas has "no right to determine what people watch or listen to."
When told Cable Bahamas has suggested the change came because Fox's subscription rate increased and local viewership was not high enough to warrant the fees, Mr Garzaroli deemed this "bull" and said Cable Bahamas can "go to hell".
The Tribune was also contacted by one 76-year-old man who said he is a Cable Bahamas shareholder and an Aliv customer.
He said: "A lot of my friends are very upset. People are telling me they are going to switch to satellite. It's in the package, don't tell me I have to pay for it. I think they don't want us to watch those channels."
He said he is upset because he likes getting TV news from multiple sources.
"I would watch CNN and watch Fox and get two opinions. Now I'm stuck to one. Give me the choice, I'll pay the extra money (for the channel) if I want to."
Another angry customer, also an elderly man, described the change as "ludicrous" and questioned what channel conservative viewers could watch now.
Another older man who called The Tribune said he "stopped watching CNN years ago" and was a regular viewer of Fox because he found it "fair and balanced."
Mr Burrows, in the published ad, suggested customers may come to appreciate OANN as well.
"It's important for consumers to know that OANN has replaced FOX News and is a network that offers similar content," he said. "The network strives to deliver credible national and international news coverage throughout the day while its prime time political talk shows illustrate a conservative perspective."
Comments
TheMadHatter 6 years, 2 months ago
They should have ADDED the OANN, and put a Cable Bahamas infomercial during the commercial time inviting viewers to "check out" OANN, and saying that they plan switch to them on March 1st and invite calls or e-mails to a particular number & e-mail.
Instead they just threw the switch without any warning.
ohdrap4 6 years, 2 months ago
i do not see that as an issue.
cable bahamas price is low, andthere is competitiopn. you do not like it? switch.
flow tv is crap and depends on their fickle internet service. BGetter to keep cable bahamas and use some online service to watcdh whatever chanel you want/
Well_mudda_take_sic 6 years, 2 months ago
If Cable Bahamas does not restore FOX News to their basic programming package at no additional cost before the end of this month, my January 2018 payment for their cable tv and internet services will be my last monthly payment to them. Thank heavens reasonable alternatives to their "junk" services now exist.
ohdrap4 6 years, 2 months ago
give this station a chance.
the news is better than fox's , i watched this morning.
there is more international news and the people look well groomed but not plastic as fox.
they are a bit more like aljazeera.
Well_mudda_take_sic 6 years, 2 months ago
You can tell me what you like or dislike, but who the hell are you to tell me what I should like or dislike?! I LIKE THE HANNITY SHOW AND A LOT OF OTHER POPULAR AND ENLIGHTENING PROGRAMMING THAT CABLE BAHAMAS HAS DROPPED IN RECENT YEARS WHILE INCREASING THEIR RATE FOR GARBAGE BASIC PROGRAMMING FROM $30 TO $40 PER MONTH. ENOUGH IS ENOUGH!!
ohdrap4 6 years, 2 months ago
i did not tell you to like or dislike anything, just asked you to try it.
you can use your monthly money to buy another service.
sheeprunner12 6 years, 2 months ago
Agreed .......... CNN is liberal and biased ........ most of its reporters are gay and they are anti-Trump .......... That does not fit well with a conservative Bahamian society at all.
Meanwhile, we should have a more reputable channel like BBC or OAN in the Family Islands who still only get the BASIC channel from Cable Bahamas, to see something other than stupid American political foolishness.
It seems that BTC cannot get its act together on the Family Islands to offer its TV option.
Reality_Check 6 years, 2 months ago
OANN is a self-described globalized network run by Intelsat, a socialist satellite communications company sympathetic to the establishment of the New World Order. It is the very antithesis of Fox News.
sheeprunner12 6 years, 2 months ago
OK .......... then put BBC on the BASIC package ...... balance USA and European news sources ........... All news coverage is biased ......... ask ZNS or CB12 or JCN.
ohdrap4 6 years, 2 months ago
what is the basic package?
I pay 30 odd dollars and the news channels are there. i thought that was the basic.
Well_mudda_take_sic 6 years, 2 months ago
Cable Bahamas announced that it will soon be dropping Fox News - probably effective beginning of March if not sooner.
Porcupine 6 years, 2 months ago
Interesting. Study after study shows that FOX viewers are less informed than those watching "other' News sources. However, in general, those who watch TV at all do a great disservice to their minds. FOX, and Murdoch media have force fed bullshit into the minds of sugar loving adults to the great detriment of a thinking society. Cable Bahamas should just tell the truth. It wasn't pricing. Cable Bahamas was just looking out for the mental health of it's viewers. Oh, too late.
milesair 6 years, 2 months ago
You got that right! Faux, the original "fake news channel" is the propaganda arm of the Trump/GOP. Telling lies and making stuff up is what Faux is all about. The most misinformed people are its viewers. Never watch it, never did and never will. That goes for all of America's corporate media propaganda machine, all B.S., all the time! Want real news? You have to watch foreign news channels. Otherwise the truth will never be known.
Well_mudda_take_sic 6 years, 2 months ago
Only a closed mind wants one sided views or no views at all.
Porcupine 6 years, 2 months ago
Fine if you want entertainment. The truth is a stranger to FOX News. Very well documented narrow minded viewership. The essence and epitome of brainwashing. As if we need more wars.
joeblow 6 years, 2 months ago
Why does Cable Bahamas have two (2) CNN channels on basic cable, but takes off Fox. If cost was their issue it seems more reasonable to remove one CNN channel to offset the cost of having Fox.
I hope they bring it back. I know quite a few people who are upset by this move!
ohdrap4 6 years, 2 months ago
there used to be two fox channels. Cable bahamas said the price of those two fox channels alone increased to cost more than all the other news channels combined.
Why would anyone want to give up BBC and aljazeera in favor of keeping Fox.
It is the deplorables who want to control other peoples minds as they want cable bahamas to drop ALL OTHER NEWS CHANNELS to leave just fox.
Cable bahamas likely did the math and the revenue they stand to lose from Fox news related cancellations is not sufficient to justify the increase in price.
sheeprunner12 6 years, 2 months ago
Well ........ Give us CB12 in the BASIC package in the Family Islands
joeblow 6 years, 2 months ago
The news is not like music or movie channels. A balance of perspectives is needed and many like the reporting of some of the personalities on Fox. We should have BBC, CNN, MSNBC and Fox for a balanced representation of views out there. Who needs Bloomberg or some of the crappy music channels?
I suspect this is more than just a business decision!
Well_mudda_take_sic 6 years, 2 months ago
Let's not forget CBC......after all, even the Canucks have some interesting (balancing) points of view too.
proudloudandfnm 6 years, 2 months ago
No problem losing Faux News at all. That actually makes me happy. Faux news breeds stupidity...
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