Let
me say, I am not a fan of O’Reilly. He is a populist, and his positions
change as frequently as the weather. But his populism was tied to the
Fox news viewer, so while he couldn’t be counted on, the viewer could
be.
O’Reilly’s rating were unmatched. Consistently. No one came near him
night after night, and the trajectory was up, always. And so it is a
blow to Fox, but everything the leftwing Murdoch boys have done in the
wake of Ailes untimely departure has been a blow to the Fox viewer.
The left has always seen Bill O’Reilly as a conservative giant, and
they are rejoicing. The left is ecstatic. They are unconcerned with the
degrees of Republicanism. If you are not a collectivist, a statist, you
must be taken down. This is a triumph for them. They don’t care about
sexual harassment: Bill Clinton is proof of that.
The problem ism where does the Fox viewer go? To the interweb and sites like mine.
As for these sexual harassment allegations, I find their claims too
little, too late, and too opportunistic. It’s interesting how these
broads go along until they don’t get their own show or when the payouts
begin. It seems to me that these women exploit their sexuality until
they don’t get what they want.
Bill O’Reilly will have a lot more free time soon.
The
Murdochs have decided Bill O’Reilly’s 21-year run at Fox News will come
to an end. According to sources briefed on the discussions, network
executives are preparing to announce O’Reilly’s departure before he
returns from an Italian vacation on April 24. Now the big questions are
how the exit will look and who will replace him.
Wednesday
morning, according to sources, executives are holding emergency
meetings to discuss how they can sever the relationship with the
country’s highest-rated cable-news host without causing collateral
damage to the network. The board of Fox News’ parent company, 21st
Century Fox, is scheduled to meet on Thursday to discuss the matter.
Sources
briefed on the discussions say O’Reilly’s exit negotiations are moving
quickly. Right now, a key issue on the table is whether he would be
allowed to say good-bye to his audience, perhaps the most loyal in all
of cable (O’Reilly’s ratings have ticked up during the sexual-harassment
allegations). Fox executives are leaning against allowing him to have a
sign-off, sources say. The other main issue on the table is money.
O’Reilly recently signed a new multiyear contract worth more than $20
million per year. When Roger Ailes left Fox News last summer, the
Murdochs paid out $40 million, the remainder of his contract.
According
to sources, Fox News wants the transition to be seamless. Executives
are currently debating possible replacement hosts. Names that have been
discussed include Eric Bolling, Dana Perino, and Tucker Carlson, who
would move from his successful 9 p.m. slot and create a need for a new
host at that time. One source said Sean Hannity is happy at 10 p.m. and
would not want to move. Network executives are hoping to have the new host in place by Monday.
The
Murdochs’ decision to dump O’Reilly shocked many Fox News staffers I’ve
spoken to in recent days. Late last week, the feeling inside the
company was that Rupert Murdoch would prevail over his son James, who
lobbied to jettison the embattled host.
It’s still unclear exactly how the tide turned.
According to one source, Lachlan Murdoch’s wife helped convince her
husband that O’Reilly needed to go, which moved Lachlan into James’s
corner. The source added that senior executives at other divisions
within the Murdoch empire have complained that if O’Reilly’s allegations
had happened to anyone else at their companies, that person would be
gone already
Spokespersons
for 21st Century Fox and Fox News did not respond to requests for
comment, nor did O’Reilly’s agent, Carole Cooper.
Let
me say, I am not a fan of O’Reilly. He is a populist, and his positions
change as frequently as the weather. But his populism was tied to the
Fox news viewer, so while he couldn’t be counted on, the viewer could
be.
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