If they flip to Fox News on a weekend, Hoosiers might catch a familiar face behind the news desk. After years as a political correspondent in Washington D.C. for Fox News, former Fox59 anchor and Indiana University alum Aishah Hasnie is anchoring her own block on the network.
“Fox News Live with Aishah Hasnie” airs Saturdays from noon to 2 p.m. and features the Bedford native and longtime broadcast journalist reporting on national news and interviewing major players in national politics. Hasnie will also cover the Trump administration as a White House correspondent as part of her promotion.
About 1.6 million viewers watched Hasnie’s solo spot premiere on Jan. 10, according to Nielsen ratings. Indiana voices have figured prominently in her first two weeks on the air; her guests have included Gov. Mike Braun and U.S. Sen. Jim Banks.
Reception to the program, Hasnie told IndyStar, has been overwhelming.
“A part of me was like, ‘I hope no one watches.’ You get a little bit of stage fright,” Hasnie said in a phone interview. “But it seems like everyone watched.”
While the anchor chair isn’t new for Hasnie — she helmed Fox59 and was a regular guest host on “Fox News Live” — a solo spot is the next step in her lengthy path through journalism. She began as an investigative reporter in central Indiana in 2008, two years after graduating from IU, where she fell in love with reporting almost by accident.
Born in Pakistan, Hasnie moved to Indiana at the age of 6 and attended North Lawrence Community schools. She graduated from Bedford North Lawrence High School in 2002 and headed up to Bloomington intent on fulfilling her family’s aspirations for her to study medicine
That plan fell apart quickly: Hasnie’s grades slipped, and she found herself on academic probation her first semester. Needing to pivot, she enrolled in journalism classes and found she excelled at writing and storytelling. After a summer spent on the job with a cousin in Illinois who worked as a television reporter, Hasnie caught the journalism bug.
“You get hit by a train,” Hasnie said. “You know what you like, and I loved it.”
Hasnie graduated from IU with a bachelor’s in broadcast journalism in 2006. She worked as an investigative reporter at Fort Wayne’s CBS affiliate WANE and Indianapolis’ Fox affiliate Fox59 before signing onto Fox’s national outlet and relocating to New York in 2019.
Though she hadn’t previously covered elections, Hasnie learned the ropes of political reporting covering former New York City Mayor Eric Adams’ Democratic primary win in 2021 and contributing to Fox’s coverage of the 2020 presidential election. When Fox proposed a move to cover Capitol Hill, Hasnie took the chance and found what she said the hardest job she’d ever have waiting for her in Washington.
Covering Congress, Hasnie said, was about as intense and comprehensive as getting a college degree in politics. But now that she’s fluent in what she and others in politics call “Washington speak,” she said she can’t imagine working in anything else.
In Washington, Hasnie came to understand her job as translating political jargon into tangible, accessible language for the average viewer. She learned to frame Congressional activity through kitchen-table topics, explaining how laws or politician talking points impact everyday life.
Though she’s behind the desk more often now with the Saturday show, that mission is still Hasnie’s journalistic North Star. She credits her Midwest childhood and strong cultural roots in Pakistan with helping her “break through the nonsense” of politics.
“I was born in a completely different part of the world, grew up in the Midwest and was able to make connections with people who don’t look like me,” Hasnie said. “Indiana taught me to listen to people.”
More than anything, Hasnie wants viewers to learn something new during her two-hour block each week. She hopes to mix meaningful, relevant reporting with fun spots — and to give viewers a reason to turn on the TV on a Saturday.
Where to watch Aishah Hasnie on Fox News Live
“Fox News Live with Aishah Hasnie” airs Saturdays from noon to 2 p.m. on the Fox News Channel. The show is available through live TV streaming services like Hulu + Live TV, YouTube TV and Apple TV, as well as the Fox Nation app.
Contact IndyStar Pop Culture Reporter Heather Bushman at hbushman@usatodayco.com. Follow her on X @hmb_1013.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: IU grad, former Fox59 anchor lands solo program on Fox News
Reporting by Heather Bushman, Indianapolis Star / Indianapolis Star
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
