Fox is apparently quite desperate to keep its stars. The network has been conducting a re-signing campaign, and the most prominent example is Bill O’Reilly, the host of popular “The O’Reilly Factor” show. The new deal signed by O’Reilly with the Fox News Channel is on four years, and O’Reilly will get paid $10 million a year for hosting the popular show.

Bill O’Reilly joined Fox in 1996, and his show averages 4 million viewers per night. The show is centered on current political news and commentaries. His views and opinions are conservatory, but he described them as “traditionalist”, a term he coined on the show in reference to political views.

It is believed that Stephen Colbert based his character from “The Colbert Report” on Bill O’Reilly. The host has had disputes in the past with several stars, among which Snoop Dogg, Ludacris, Rosie O’Donnell, 50 Cent and George Clooney.

Most of the people Fox have had re-sign or sign contracts have strong political views and are quite outspoken about them. Both Shepard Smith and Sean Hannity have signed multimillion-dollar deals with the channel. They also brought on Glenn Beck from CNN’s Headline News.

Beck has signed the same type of contract, warranting a considerable number of years with Fox, with a decent remuneration. Moreover, Beck also shares the conservative views of his fellow co-workers.

One might wonder how Fox News will afford to pay all these multimillion-dollar contracts. Apparently, they will heavily rely on advertising – which is quite unstable, given the economic crisis that has affected those who paid for television ads. Analysts back up the fact that Fox’s success depends on the U.S. economy.