News Corp. is getting religion--online.
The media conglomerate's Fox Entertainment Group has acquired top spirituality site Beliefnet, expanding its faith-related properties to the
Web.
In the deal announced Tuesday, News Corp. gains one of the most popular and respected sites focused on religion and spirituality, and an online outlet to complement its faith-centered
properties in traditional media. They include HarperCollins' HarperOne and Zondervan religious-oriented book units and Fox Faith Films, which produces family-oriented films and TV programs.
"We
do have content from various divisions within News Corp. and Fox that mesh well together with Beliefnet," said Dan Fawcett, president of Fox Digital Media, under which the site will be grouped. "We
view Beliefnet as a stand-alone operating business as well as creating a whole host of corporate opportunities for Fox and News Corp."
Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
While
acknowledging that the pairing may strike some as surprising, Steven Waldman, Beliefnet's CEO, editor in chief and co-founder, said it's a good fit. "If you look at News Corp. in terms of
faith-related assets, they already are the No. 1 media company in the faith area," says Waldman, a former U.S. News and World Report national editor who started the site in 1999 as a hub for
exploring a variety of religious faiths and spiritual disciplines.
By joining forces with the media titan, Beliefnet will be able to accelerate its growth and better fulfill its mission, Waldman
said. With 2.8 million unique monthly visitors, Beliefnet already ranks as the top religion-focused site, according to comScore Media Metrix. However, traffic is slightly down from a year ago, when it
had almost 3.2 million visitors.
The company had 2006 revenues of $12.6 million, and its advertisers include national marketers such as Eli Lilly, Pfizer, Disney and Fox. Health-related
advertising has been a strong category for Beliefnet since it emerged from bankruptcy in 2002 following the dot-com bust. Religious advertisers now make up only a small part of its marketing base.
Since then, the site has continued to expand its content and features, most recently adding a social networking component called Beliefnet Community. The site has long been recognized for its
thoughtful editorial offerings, and earlier this year received the 2007 National Magazine Association award for General Excellence Online.
The acquisition may raise questions similar to those
preceding News Corp's purchase of The Wall Street Journal about whether Beliefnet's editorial quality and objectivity could be compromised under its new owner.
Waldman assures that it won't be
an issue. "News Corp. is buying us because of our reputation, not in spite of it," he said. "If we start messing that up, it would be bad business, so we're completely aligned."
He points out
that while the Zondervon publishing unit is mostly focused on Christian topics, HarperOne publishes books covering a range of spiritual and inspirational subjects. "If you look at the range of
offerings in the religion and spiritual space, just within News Corp, you can see a very broad range of approaches," he said.
Fawcett also noted that Fox has no immediate plans to change
Beliefnet, and that Waldman will remain in his current position as chief executive. "It would be counterintuitive to damage the value of the brand Steve has worked so hard to develop," Fawcett said.