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."