At least not until the “mountains of fraud” which Trump’s lawyers remain unable to prove in court are somehow resolved.

Which they won’t be, at least not to OAN’s satisfaction. Conspiracy theories are unfalsifiable by design. So I guess they’re committing themselves to describing Biden as “the so-called president” for the next four years?

It’s not a bad marketing angle at a moment when disaffected Fox viewers are looking around for something harder-edge. If Fox is cocaine and Newsmax is crack, OAN is willing to push some sort of heroin-meth hybrid of populism to gain a competitive advantage. Watch, then read on.

“One America News will officially not be calling Joe Biden the president-elect… we are the only broadcast news network out there with the integrity to report that this election isn’t over. Fox News caved, to no one’s surprise.” pic.twitter.com/o0e6TFZ2Gf

— Matthew Gertz (@MattGertz) December 17, 2020

He’s right about Newsmax describing Biden as the president-elect. That decision was made on Monday, after the electoral college made things official. Although, at last check, Newsmax’s biggest star was still insisting that it ain’t over ’til it’s over.

That’s a Fox-y approach to this dilemma. The hallmark of Fox News, especially during the Trump years, is that the news team reports the news and then the opinion hosts who deliver the ratings report … their version of the news, let’s say. Having Newsmax’s newsier hosts describe Biden as the president-elect while Greg Kelly goes his own way is in keeping with FNC’s model of trying to play both sides, earning some grudging industry cred by acknowledging unpleasant realities during daytime hours while letting the nighttime hosts give the people what they want.

Speaking of which, has the ratings pressure from Newsmax forced Fox to also hedge its bets on whether to call Biden the “president-elect”? They’ve called him that many times already, of course; the Fox decision desk called the race for him on Saturday, November 7, just minutes after the other networks did. But look at how the hosts of “Fox & Friends” described him this morning — more than once:

"the former vice president who is, according to some, president-elect"

brian kilmeade keeps saying things like this, now even after the electoral college voted. i don't think he thinks that joe biden won the election. pic.twitter.com/8VfraYVcZB

— Bobby Lewis (@revrrlewis) December 17, 2020

"what they're calling the President-elect Biden" pic.twitter.com/i3uLkwJxOY

— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) December 17, 2020

Is that quirk special to F&F, possibly because it’s the president’s favorite show and they know he’s watching? When did it begin? Did Fox execs insist upon it, or did Trump? Or did Brian Kilmeade and Ainsley Earhardt take it upon themselves to start doing it? Fox Kremlinology is always fun. I wonder if the hype now surrounding Congress’s session on January 6, which is destined to be a bust for the president and his fans, has led to a compromise at FNC in which they’ll continue to gesture rhetorically to the idea that Biden *still* isn’t technically the duly recognized president-elect until January 6 and then they’ll drop that convention after Congress certifies the results.

Here’s Fox all-star and Trump buddy (sorry, I mean former buddy) Geraldo Rivera asking fans to please knock it off and accept that Biden won. Exit question: What term will Hannity use to describe Biden over the next four years? I’m leaning towards “cheater-in-chief” but “Cheaty Joe” is a dark-horse contender.

Trump friend, Fox News Contributor, Attorney, and snowbound Geraldo Rivera gives a reality check to the “knuckleheads”: “Joe Biden won, Donald Trump lost. It is over.” pic.twitter.com/z0wv6ElNuG

— Mike Sington (@MikeSington) December 16, 2020