Roger Ailes Resigns as Fox News Chief After Sexual Harassment Accusations
After 20 years of building Fox News into a political powerhouse and ratings king for Rupert Murdoch, news chief Roger Ailes is out. His downfall is due to sexual harassment charges. Once news anchor Gretchen Carlson filed a lawsuit against AIles, others began to speak out about his inappropriate behavior.
Ailes will leave the Fox network effective immediately. Rupert Murdoch, the 85-year-old executive co-chairman of 21st Century Fox and Ailes’ close ally for decades, will assume the position of chairman and acting CEO of Fox News Channel and Fox Business Network. He will work closely with current Fox News executives Bill Shine, Jay Wallace and Mark Kranz until a permanent CEO is named.
In a statement Thursday announcing Ailes’ departure, Murdoch noted Ailes’ “remarkable contribution to our company and our country. Roger shared my vision of a great and independent television organization and executed it brilliantly over 20 great years. Fox News has given voice to those who were ignored by the traditional networks and has been one of the great commercial success stories of modern media.”
Lachlan and James Murdoch added: “We join our father in recognizing Roger’s remarkable contributions to our company. Our talented Fox News and Fox Business colleagues, up and down the organization and on both sides of the camera, have built something that continues to redefine the cable news experience for millions of viewers. We are enormously proud of their accomplishments. For them, as well as for our colleagues across our entire organization, we continue our commitment to maintaining a work environment based on trust and respect. We take seriously our responsibility to uphold these traditional, long-standing values of our company.”
Terms of his exit have not been released, however sources say he could walk away with the readier of his contract, $40 million.
