Businesses buying ads on President Donald Trump's favorite television shows are seeing higher price tags, with consultants increasingly using the programs' breaks in hopes of catching the president's attention.
"Instead of lobbying through the usual channels, it's like speaking directly into the president's ear," a prominent Washington D.C. consultant told Politico.
He said some of his clients, who include a major pharmaceutical company and a prominent bank, are negotiating to buy advertising on "The O'Reilly Factor" on Fox News and MSNBC's "Morning Joe" program.
Trump often responds directly through Twitter while watching these and other news television programming about what he's watching, with many of those messages topping news coverage.
According to one media buyer, ad rates for "Morning Joe" have more than doubled after the November election. Trump and show anchor Joe Scarborough are said to have a close relationship and talk with each other frequently, but the president has also frequently slammed the program, along with Scarborough and co-anchor Mika Brzezinski, through Twitter.
The ad rates for "O'Reilly" and Fox News' other primetime programming have also increased by about 50 percent, as Trump frequently watches the network's nighttime shows and has been a frequent guest on "Hannity."
“The president’s media habits are so predictable, advertisers migrate to those areas,” a media buyer told Politico.
The D.C. consultant also said there are companies that are placing ads proactively, in hopes of avoiding Trump's ire on Twitter, and in one case, trying to get Trump to tweet against their competitors.
Fox News refused comment, but an MSNBC source said rates for "Morning Joe" will likely go up, as "with strategically placed ad buys in New York and DC it’s likely the rates would increase ... [and] we would capitalize on increased interest."
Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
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