The ‘Spin stops here’? It looks like the ‘Spin’ is just getting started.
There have been some Very Big Changes over there at Fox News — Megyn Kelly’s gone, Roger Ailes was ditched because of sexual assault allegations, and now multi-million viewer draw, Bill O’Reilly has been dumped for a similar scandal.
Rupert Murdoch has been pressured by his sons to cut the popular show host loose as women continue to come forward with allegations of impropriety.
The scandal seems to be a behemoth that has cost the show nearly two dozen advertisers.
Bill O’Reilly is reportedly out at Fox News.
New York reports that Rupert Murdoch has decided to terminate the network’s most popular host in the wake of a recent wave of sexual harassment allegations and that the decision will be announced before he returns from vacation next week.
Rupert reportedly made this decision after being pressured by his two sons Lachlan and James according to sources.
O’Reilly had recently signed a $20million-a-year contract just weeks before his termination.
Eric Bolling, Dana Perino, and Tucker Carlson are reportedly in talks to replace O’Reilly.This comes one day after a new accuser came forward to make sexual harassment allegations against O’Reilly.
Attorney Lisa Bloom told The Hollywood Reporter that the woman in question worked for another network back in 2008 but had a desk near O’Reilly’s office, and claimed that he would refer to the African-American woman as ‘hot chocolate’ when he walked by during the day.
The woman is not asking for any money, just ‘accountability’ according to Bloom.
‘He would never talk to her, not even hello, except to grunt at her like a wild boar,’ alleged Bloom on O’Reilly’s treatment of this latest alleged victim.
‘He would leer at her. He would always do this when no one else was around and she was scared.’
O’Reilly’s attorney, is hitting back, however:
Marc E Kasowitz, attorney for Bill O’Reilly said in a statement: ‘Bill O’Reilly has been subjected to a brutal campaign of character assassination that is unprecedented in post-McCarthyist America.
‘This law firm has uncovered evidence that the smear campaign is being orchestrated by a far-left organization bent on destroying O’Reilly for political and financial reasons.
‘That evidence will be put forth shortly and is irrefutable.’
An earlier statement from O’Reilly’s lawyer said: ‘It is outrageous that an allegation from an anonymous person about something that purportedly happened a decade ago is being treated as fact, especially when there is an obviously orchestrated campaign by activists and lawyers to destroy Mr. O’Reilly and enrich themselves through publicity driven donations.’
But it’s not so easy to dismiss the complaints. The New York Times reported that five women had been paid a total of $13 million over several years, and it didn’t even include some of the women complaining about inappropriate behavior now.
The report claimed that close to $13 million had been paid to five women who accused O’Reilly of inappropriate behavior in the workplace: Rachel Witlieb Bernstein, Andrea Mackris, Rebecca Gomez Diamond, Laurie Dhue, and Juliet Huddy.
It was Mackris’ lawsuit that made headlines when it was settled back in 2004 by the network for a formerly undisclosed sum which over the weekend was revealed to be $9million.
In her complaint, Mackris claimed she had been sexually harassed by O’Reilly and detailed their phone sex conversations in which he allegedly listed off his female conquests.
O’Reilly also allegedly detailed a sex fantasy he had about Mackris using ‘that little loofah thing’ in the shower, but towards the end accidentally called it a ‘falafel thing’.
Read more: Daily Mail
So, what do YOU think?
Did Fox News do the RIGHT thing by firing Bill O'Reilly?
