#Ex-Fox News anchor Shepard Smith joins CNBC

Former Fox News anchor Shepard Smith is set to join CNBC as the host of a new nightly newscast.

The 56-year-old newscaster will host an hourlong weekday broadcast at 7 p.m. ET called “The News with Shepard Smith,” which is expected to start in the fall, the network said Wednesday.

Smith, who spent 23 years at Fox, left the network last October, telling news outlets that he asked the network to let him out of his contract so he could start “a new chapter.”  Fox News shares a common owner with News Corp., the publisher of The Post.

Smith, who grabs the role of chief general news anchor at CNBC, has stayed tight-lipped on his future plans until Wednesday when he said in a statement: “I am honored to continue to pursue the truth, both for CNBC’s loyal viewers and for those who have been following my reporting for decades in good times and in bad.”

Smith is the first big talent hire following NBCUniversal’s move to reunite its three news brands — NBC News, MSNBC and CNBC — under the direction of newly-appointed NBCUniversal News Group Chairman Cesar Conde.

Smith’s program is part of a broader overhaul of CNBC’s lineup, which carries live business-focused programming during the day, and an odd assortment of shows that include “Jay Leno’s Garage” and reruns of “Shark Tank” and “Undercover Boss.”