Al Jazeera Announces New Media Platform for US Conservatives

The new outlet, called Rightly, will target Republicans who “feel left out of mainstream media,” Politico reported and will be led by a former Fox News journalist.

Al Jazeera became a significant presence in the US in 2013, launching the perceived progressive Al Jazeera America news channel and website. Based in Doha and funded by Qatar's state, the network closed down its TV channel in 2016 but remained a significant presence online with its AJPlus network. Its international channel – Al Jazeera English – is also relatively popular in the U.S.

RELATED:

Trump's Fraud Theory Fails to Convince Media Around the World

The launch of the conservative effort arrives at a time of increasing extremism within right-wing U.S. news sources.

The go-to news channel for the American right, Fox News, has lurched even further right as it faces threats from ultra-conservative TV channels NewsMax and One America News.

Politico reports that Scott Norvell, a former Fox News staffer, will be named editor-in-chief of Rightly, which plans to begin its conservative show this Thursday.

Norvell left News Corp, which owns Fox News, in 2012, ending 16 years at the company in various roles.

A former staff member at Heat Street, a website launched by News Corp in April 2016 and closed in August 2017, said Norvell was responsible for its rightwing shift.

“Scott Norvell played a part in transitioning Heat Street from the libertarian youth-oriented site as originally envisaged to pro-Trump alt-right Breitbart clone,” the former staff member said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Privately, some Al Jazeera staff expressed frustration at the launch of Rightly, wondering how it fits into the network’s previously stated commitments to giving a voice to marginalized communities.

According to Politico, the new Al Jazeera show will be called Right Now with Stephen Kent. It will be hosted by Stephen Kent, a commentator who currently presents Beltway Banthas, a podcast about “Star Wars, Politics & More."

Kent not only has a book deal with Center Street, a conservative publisher which has worked with far-right authors such as Donald Trump Jr and Corey Lewandowski, but has also failed to immediately respond to requests for comment, only having retweeted news of the novel platform on Tuesday morning.