Rob Schneider Pitches Conservative Talk Show to LA Times Owner

Actor Rob Schneider, a vocal supporter of President-elect Donald Trump, has reportedly pitched a conservative alternative to ABC‘s ‘The View‘ to Los Angeles Times owner Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong. According to a report by Status, Schneider presented the idea during a meeting last month at the newspaper’s El Segundo offices, where he was joined by actress Cheryl Hines, who is married to Trump’s nominee to lead the Department of Health and Human Services, Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

Soon-Shiong, a billionaire biotech entrepreneur, invited Schneider and Hines to tour the newsroom and discuss the newspaper’s video capabilities. It was during this visit that Schneider reportedly proposed the creation of a talk show aimed at appealing to conservative audiences. A spokesperson for Schneider confirmed the meeting but declined to elaborate on whether the two discussed collaborating on a show.

The potential partnership has raised eyebrows among Los Angeles Times staffers, with some expressing concern over the newspaper’s involvement in such a project. According to Oliver Darcy‘s newsletter, rumors of the collaboration left journalists ‘understandably alarmed.’ The Times has faced criticism in recent years for its perceived liberal bias, and Soon-Shiong has taken steps to diversify its editorial board, including adding conservative commentator Scott Jennings.

Schneider’s pitch comes amid a broader shift in the media landscape, as traditional outlets grapple with declining revenues and competition from alternative platforms. The Los Angeles Times, which lost over $30 million in 2023, has undergone significant downsizing, including layoffs of nearly a quarter of its newsroom staff. Soon-Shiong’s efforts to appeal to conservative readers have included blocking an endorsement of Vice President Kamala Harris and introducing a media bias metric to assess the newspaper’s ideological leanings.

Schneider, who has been critical of COVID-19 lockdown measures and vaccines, has publicly praised Soon-Shiong for steering the Times in a new direction. In a post on X, Schneider wrote, ‘Congratulations to [Soon-Shiong] for making [the Los Angeles Times] a newspaper for ALL CALIFORNIANS again!’ The actor has also announced plans to launch a women’s talk show through his media company, No Apologies Media, which he described as a ‘funny’ and ‘entertaining’ alternative to ‘The View.’

Representatives for the Los Angeles Times and Cheryl Hines did not immediately respond to requests for comment.