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The Five (talk show)

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The Five
File:The Five Logo.jpg
Title card for The Five
Country of originUnited States
No. of seasons2
No. of episodes336 (As of October 19, 2012)
Original release
NetworkFox News Channel
ReleaseJuly 11, 2011 (2011-07-11) –
present

The Five is an American talk show on Fox News Channel featuring a rotating panel of contributors who discuss current political issues and pop culture. The show premiered in July 2011, replacing the Glenn Beck program, and airs on weekdays at 5:00p.m. ET with replays at 2:00a.m. ET.[1]

On October 3, 2011, after successful ratings and high popularity, Fox News announced that The Five would become the permanent 5p.m. series, as the program was previously announced to last only during the summer.[2]

Format and history

According to the initial Fox News press release announcing The Five, the show features a "roundtable ensemble of five rotating Fox personalities who...discuss, debate and at times debunk the hot news stories, controversies and issues of the day."[3] Fox News chairman Roger Ailes said the format for the show was inspired by chat-oriented programs such as The View; it has also been compared to the "Great American Panel" segment on Fox News' Hannity.[4]

The show is made up of six blocks. Each of the first five blocks is introduced, closed and loosely moderated by a different co-host. The co-host's block may be on a single topic or multiple topics. The final block is a wrap-up segment wherein various topics are quickly visited.

The show's co-hosts are:[5]

The panel usually comprises Bolling and Gutfeld, with Beckel or Williams (usually Beckel) representing the liberal point of view, and a rotation of Tantaros, Perino and Guilfoyle filling the last two spots.

Brian Kilmeade, Monica Crowley, Andrew Napolitano, Leslie Marshall, KT McFarland, Tamara Holder, Juliet Huddy, and Joe Trippi have also appeared as guest co-hosts.

The show occasionally features additional guests, including politicians, celebrities, and sports figures.[1] Guests have included Sean Hannity, Donald Trump, Karl Rove, Sarah Palin, Barbara Bush, Bill O'Reilly, Greta van Susteren, Dennis Miller, and Marco Rubio.

On October 21, 2012, Fox News aired a special primetime edition of the show.

Recurring elements

  • Bob's Prediction: Beckel offers a prediction about something related to a topic being covered.
  • Dana's Dos and Don'ts: Perino offers political advice to someone in the news.
  • Greg's Tortured Metaphor: Gutfeld explains a news story by using a metaphor or simile.
  • Greg's Monologue: Similar to his "Gregalogue" on Red Eye, Gutfeld opens his block with a comedic rant skewering newsmakers (frequently Hollywood or academia elites).
  • Political Lightning Round: Each co-host briefly shares a political story that may have been under-reported that day.
  • Cue Music: Formerly a gag by only Gutfeld, co-hosts of the show will frequently misidentify the artist performing the music leading into their segments.
  • One More Thing: The hosts take turns sharing a final thought (on varying topics) before the show ends.
    • Bob's Tease for One More Thing: Bob Beckel offers a tease for the upcoming final block, emphasizing, with stentorian glory, that there is, yet, "ONE more thing."
    • Greg's Word Ban: Gutfeld uses his "One More Thing" to "outlaw" a word or phrase he dislikes or feels is overused.
    • The Secret World of Dana Perino: Gutfeld uses his "One More Thing" to reveal a disturbing, previously unknown "fact" about Dana Perino.
    • Greg Gutfeld's Dreams of My Five: Gutfeld uses his "One More Thing" to relate the events of a comedic dream he had about the show.
File:Thefivelogo.jpg
A projection of The Five logo.

Reception

The Five debuted in July 2011 to less-than-stellar ratings, although it won its time slot.[6] Since then the show has seen broader success, some nights even rivaling Beck's former audience.[4] The Five consistently beats its competitors on MSNBC and CNN combined, and ranks among the top ten cable-news shows.[7] In addition, the show is paying off more with advertisers, who were reluctant to be associated with the controversial content of Beck's show.[7] The Five was the sixth-most-watched cable-news program during the latter half of 2011 and the first quarter of 2012;[8][9] it had jumped the fourth place by the third quarter of 2012,[10] pulling in especially high numbers during the 2012 Republican Convention.[11] The Five drew 4.4 million viewers on Election Day 2012.[12]

Reaction to the show among critics has been mostly positive, though the week it premiered, Alex Pareene, columnist for the liberal-leaning Salon.com, slammed it as "boring and lame" and "not even worth getting outraged about."[13] Entertainment Weekly TV critic Ken Tucker dubbed the show his "favorite guilty pleasure" and praised its freewheeling style and zany humor, calling it "a delightfully nutty show with an undercurrent of ragin’ crazy."[14] Mediaite's Frances Martel, examining cable news' shift toward more personality-driven commentary, praised The Five for adding an element of entertainment to the news: "Beyond having opinions, the new generation of cable news talk shows spearheaded by The Five have personalities, characters and character arcs that are worth tuning in for. ... Unlike the previous, host-driven generation of opinion shows, The Five adds a refreshing new element to cable news– a plot."[15]

The show's "anything goes" attitude has led it into some minor controversies, particularly involving co-host Bob Beckel's on-air profanity[16] and insensitive remarks. In August, Beckel was forced to apologize on-air when, while trying to clarify an earlier remark wherein he called Michael Vick a "redneck," said the term was not racial, because "blacks are rednecks, whites are rednecks, I was a redneck, Chinamen are rednecks."[17] Even the music producers play leading in and out of individual segments has raised hackles. In October, The Five used Maroon 5's "This Love" during a transition to commercial, prompting a Twitter war between Maroon 5 lead singer Adam Levine and The Five co-host Greg Gutfeld.[18]

References

  1. ^ a b "Glenn Beck To Be Replaced By "The Five" On FOX News". RealClearPolitics. June 30, 2011. Retrieved July 12, 2011.
  2. ^ http://www.deadline.com/2011/10/glenn-becks-temporary-replacement-on-fox-news-the-five-to-become-permenent/
  3. ^ Template:Cite article
  4. ^ a b Stelter, Brian. In Beck’s Shadow, Rise of ‘The Five’. New York Times. 2011-12-25. Retrieved 2012-05-16.
  5. ^ "FOX News Channel's The Five to Continue as Scheduled Program". businesswire.com. Retrieved October 3, 2011.
  6. ^ 'The Five' Debuts On Fox News To Lower Ratings Than Beck. The Huffington Post. 2011-07-13.
  7. ^ a b Summer Of Gutfeld? Strong Ratings For Both Red Eye And The Five. Mediaite. 2011-08-30.
  8. ^ 'The Five' Gets Permanent Spot In Fox News Lineup. The Huffington Post. 2011-10-03.
  9. ^ Cable News Ratings: Top 30 Programs For First Quarter Of 2012. The Huffington Post. 2012-03-28. Retrieved 2012-05-16.
  10. ^ Cable News Ratings Q3 2012: MSNBC Breaks Records, CNN Up From Last Quarter. The Huffington Post. 2012-10-03. Retrieved 2012-11-24.
  11. ^ http://www.mediaite.com/tv/monday-ratings-the-five-has-highest-rated-show-to-date/
  12. ^ Cable News Ratings for Tuesday, November 6, 2012. TVBytheNumbers.com. 2012-11-07. Retrieved 2012-11-20.
  13. ^ Pareene, Alex. Fox’s “The Five” off to slow, boring start. Salon.com. 2011-07-13.
  14. ^ Tucker, Ken. 'The Five': The Fox News Channel's most delightfully crazy show. Entertainment Weekly. 2011-11-07.
  15. ^ Martel, Frances. The NYT Profiles Fox News’ The Five: ‘Like A Family At Thanksgiving’. Mediaite.com. 2011-12-26. Retrieved 2012-05-16.
  16. ^ Bob Beckel Curses Yet Again On Fox News. The Huffington Post. 2011-09-30.
  17. ^ Beckel Proves He’s Not Prejudiced: ‘Redneck’ Could Refer To Whites, Blacks, Or ‘Chinamen’. Mediaite. 2011-08-19.
  18. ^ Adam Levine and Fox News hosts exchange angry tweets over use of his music. Entertainment Weekly. 2011-10-20.
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