Patriot Awards and the Evolution of Fox Nation: A Rare Interview with President Jason Klarman

Launched in 2018 to showcase and honor individuals who do extraordinary things, the Patriot Awards have become a centerpiece of Fox Nation’s programming. It’s a night that shines the spotlight not on Hollywood stars but on everyday heroes who embody the values cherished by service’s viewers. But as the five-year anniversary brought the show to Nashville, I found myself attending for other reasons.

See, behind the scenes, there’s a visionary at work, Jason Klarman, who has played a pivotal role in Fox Nation’s evolution. With a career spanning decades, and a knack for innovation, Klarman now holds the reins as the president of Fox Nation, Fox News Media’s lifestyle streaming service. His journey, marked by transformative initiatives, strategic celebrity partnerships, and an intimate understanding of audience desires, is aimed at revolutionizing Fox Nation in new ways.

Jason Klarman: Behind the Scenes

Fox Nation was launched in November 2018 and was created by the CEO of Fox News, Suzanne Scott. She continues to ultimately oversee the streaming service, but Klarman was hired as president to evolve and grow the service far from its news origins. Before assuming his role as president of Fox Nation and executive vice president of marketing for Fox News Media, Klarman embarked on a remarkable journey, shaping the landscape of television networks and digital media platforms.

To understand Klarman, you need to go back to the first days of the Fox News Channel. Klarman was part of the original team that launched the channel, rising to VP of marketing shortly thereafter. In 2001, he left to take the helm of Bravo’s marketing, focusing on brand identity and the beginning of digital marketing for the network. Klarman’s expertise in identifying and nurturing emerging trends in the media landscape positioned Bravo as a leader in reality television, which opened another door as Klarman became the president of Oxygen.

His leadership brought about a rebranding of Oxygen, shifting its focus towards a more female-centric audience. Under his guidance, Oxygen Media introduced compelling and original programming that resonated with viewers, solidifying the network’s position in the competitive media landscape. Klarman’s ability to adapt to evolving consumer preferences and reinvigorate networks proved to be a recurring theme throughout his career.

Klarman rejoined Fox News as a consultant in 2018, became head of marketing in 2019, and then was crowned president of Fox Nation in 2021 under Scott who launched Fox Nation originally. But even before he officially rejoined the company, Klarman was testing the waters at Fox by launching the Patriot Awards — the tentpole event that earlier this month brought thousands to the Grand Ole Opry to see their favorite Fox Nation stars and award recipients walk down the red carpet.

As I met Klarman, we were ushered inside where sound checks were underway and video packages were being tested. We sat on a pew in the first row and it is here that Klarman’s personality really showed as he bragged about “an amazing team with a production value of the Oscars.”

It is hard to debate the evolution of Fox Nation — initially designed to be an extension of the Fox News cable presence, featuring personalities from the conservative news network. However, Klarman envisioned a broader horizon; recognizing the platform’s potential to appeal to a diverse audience, he led the charge to change Fox Nation from a news-centric service to a more inclusive platform, encompassing lifestyle and entertainment content.

Game-Changing Celebrity Partnerships and Hit Shows

Klarman’s tenure at Fox Nation has been marked by strategic celebrity partnerships (most of which were present or presenting at the Patriot Awards) and the introduction of hit shows that have captivated audiences. For those unaware, here are some notable examples:

1. Kevin Costner: The acclaimed actor Kevin Costner joined Fox Nation, making a significant impact early on. Costner, most recently known for starring in the most popular drama on television Yellowstone, brought a wave of excitement as he hosted and participated in shows that resonated with viewers. Costner recently hosted the documentary series “Yellowstone One-Fifty” celebrating the sesquicentennial of Yellowstone National Park.

2. Rob Lowe: Another Hollywood heavyweight, Rob Lowe hosted the four-part docuseries “Liberty or Death: Boston Tea Party” which debuted on Fox Nation last week. As Klarman put it, “This is where the revolution began. We want to honor that history and people want it too.”

3. Dennis Quaid: The charismatic Hollywood favorite Dennis Quaid is the host of Fox Nation’s “Top Combat Pilot,” which debuted earlier this month. At the Patriot Awards, Quaid was on stage performing a song from his recent album.

4. Dan Aykroyd: Comedy legend Dan Aykroyd is set to embark on a laughter (and beer) filled journey with the new show “A History of the World in Six Glasses,” set to debut next year. Joining the “Blues Brothers” and “Ghostbusters” star will be Jim Belushi, Jon Lovitz, Kevin Nealon, and George Wendt.

There are many other stars, like Rosanne Barr and Jon Lovitz, who have appeared in programs on Fox Nation, with more to come. This may seem odd considering the more news-adjacent origins of the streaming service, but Klarman is carving out a “lifestyle and entertainment” niche with the platform that doesn’t rely exclusively on Fox News’ audience.

Pushed on what that means for the larger corporation, he explained, “Having entertainment that has some informational value or something along with it, I think as you know, is a really big space for us.”

However, Fox Nation’s journey hasn’t been without controversy. One of the boldest moves under Klarman’s leadership was the decision to revive the iconic unscripted series, “Cops.” The show had previously been canceled by Paramount Network due to concerns about its portrayal of law enforcement following the death of George Floyd. Klarman’s decision to bring it back raised eyebrows, but it also resonated with a significant portion of the audience who valued the show’s authenticity.

“We’re giving people what they want. We brought ‘Cops’ back, we like the cops.” Klarman said. “It is a great show. It’s been on for 34 seasons, of course, we’ll take it. And so we are the original platform for all new episodes … And now it’s doing amazing. It’s the most popular show by far.”

Another noteworthy development in Fox Nation’s content lineup is “CrimeCam 24/7.” Hosted by Sean “Sticks” Larkin, known for his role on Reelz reality show “On Patrol: Live,” the show offers a real-time glimpse into various incidents captured by cameras. However, it’s worth noting that Larkin’s involvement with Reelz’s show previously brought a lawsuit by A&E, accusing “On Patrol: Live” of being a “blatant rip-off” of A&E’s “Live PD.”

There was also controversy surrounding Barr’s standup special “Cancel This!”, which aired on the streamer earlier this year. The comedy special was in response to Barr being fired from her revived ABC comedy “Rosanne” for tweeting a racist remark about former President Barack Obama adviser Valerie Jarrett. Even though her character was written off, the show remains on the air, now known as “The Conners.”

These moves reflect Klarman’s willingness to push boundaries and take calculated risks to offer unique content to Fox Nation’s audience.

“I’m an unscripted guy,” he said. “Let me see what it looks like. I’ll pay the extra because if I don’t like the show, I don’t want 10 of them… But when I saw the sizzle for ‘Crime Cam 24/7,’ I was like, ‘That is a show!’ I mean, all of these cameras, all over the place capturing these crimes in ways that we’ve never seen before. Such a good idea.”

And, so far, these ideas seem to be paying off for Fox Nation.

Fox Nation Growth and Loyalty

Fox Nation is celebrating its fifth anniversary this week and ideas for the future are already in the development stages. But Klarman emphasized that success isn’t just about acquiring subscribers with big-name stars and buzzy programming — it’s about retaining those customers as well.

Klarman proudly points out the platform’s “very, very low churn rate,” indicating that viewers are not just signing up for the service, but sticking around as well. It’s a unique “win-win” situation where big tentpole events like the Patriot Awards and original shows bring in new subscribers who then deeply engage with the library content. Both Fubo and YouTube TV carry Fox Nation as a channel. The Streamable saw Fox Nation driving subscriptions to both live TV streaming services specifically for the Patriot Awards.

“If someone would come up with a good bundle idea, I think we actually would complement the bundles very, very well,” Klarman said about broadening Fox Nation distribution. “You know, we’re after an audience that other people aren’t getting … The model [of direct-to-consumer] works pretty good for us. The business is good, we invest in big tentpole ideas, but we also have a lot of content that’s produced by our news production team at a very low cost.”

In other words, Fox Nation doesn’t need added distribution to buoy its subscriber base, but they are open to it if it makes sense.

In May 2022, when Fox CEO Lachlan Murdoch discussed Fox Nation subscriber numbers, he told investors, “Fox Nation has seen its subscriber base triple in less than 18 months.” In a more recent update in August of this year, he noted, “Over the past fiscal year, our subscriber base has surged by approximately 80%.”

While media industry researcher Michael Nathanson’s estimate suggests that Fox Nation boasts over 1 million paying subscribers, insiders at Fox Nation told IndieWire that the actual figure surpasses this estimate. However, it’s important to note that Fox Nation does not officially disclose its subscriber numbers to the public which was repeated by Klarman in our one-on-one at the Patriot Awards. But as VP of marketing for Fox News and president of the only streaming subscription business for Fox, customer growth is still top of mind for Klarman.

“I still have to do a certain number of subscribers every month,” he told me while seated in the front row of the Opry. “I’ll show you something… This is what I look at.”

At this point, Klarman pulled out his phone and pulled open a real-time report of the subscriber count presented in a quickly growing bar chart while obfuscating the numbers with his fingers.

“I’m looking at how many people I’m acquiring now. And so what you’ll see here is this, people are signing up for the Patriot Awards,” Klarman said with a smile.

With still an hour before the event was to begin, the up-and-to-the-right movement of the chart indicated how successful the Awards would be for Fox Nation that evening.

With Jason Klarman at the helm and a dedicated team behind him, Fox Nation is poised to grow even more with strategic stories and shows, celebrity appearances, and the unwavering loyalty of its subscribers. As it enters its next year, the streaming service is primed to build upon its remarkable success, reshaping the way its audience experiences entertainment and news.