Fox After Ailes

Liberals will stop posting hate speech as soon as conservatives stop tattooing swastika on their head.

There are FAR more liberals who post hate speech than there are conservatives who tattoos bullseyes swastikas on their head.

Hell, you can just go to this office to find more hate speech liberals than skinhead extremists in this country.

"tolerate my intolerance"

Didn't you know, it is now hate speech to call somebody who says racist things a racist, or a homophobe for saying homophobic things. Same idea as "tolerate my intolerance" that is popular among certain groups of people.

Ehh, 6/10. Pun aside, how do you mean? He will help Fox's image or will continue and increase the usual BS that is Fox news?

....you can't be serious....

Are you saying that there's no bias in the media, especially CNN, in this election?

What does that have to do with hate speech?

Former Fox News host Andrea Tantaros filed a lawsuit on Monday alleging that she was sexually harassed by former network chief Roger Ailes and host Bill O'Reilly.

The suit, which describes Fox News as a misogynistic, sex-fueled cult, also alleges that newly appointed Fox News co-president Bill Shine encouraged her to drop her harassment claims.

"Fox News masquerades as a defender of traditional family values, but behind the scenes, it operates like a sex-fueled, Playboy Mansion-like cult, steeped in intimidation, indecency and misogyny," Tantaros claims in the lawsuit, first obtained by The New York Times.

Tantaros' suit comes nearly seven weeks after former Fox News host Gretchen Carlson accused Ailes of sexual harassment, prompting at least 20 women to come forward with their own stories of harassment at the hands of Ailes. Ailes has denied all the allegations.

It also comes after a months-long dispute between Tantaros and Fox News regarding the termination of her employment at the network. Fox News has claimed that Tantaros invented sexual harassment claims when in fact she was in breach of contract for publishing a book without approval. Tantaros's lawyers have accused Fox News of using the book as an excuse for her termination.

Tantaros's specific charges against Ailes echo those of other accusers who have come forward in recent weeks. In one instance, she says, Ailes invited her into his office and told her to turn around so he could "get a good look" at her. When she refused, the suit states, she was moved off the well-rated 5 p.m. show to a lower-rated midday show.

Related: Rupert Murdoch names Ailes' successors at embattled Fox

After several such interactions, Tantaros says she met with Shine about her complaints. Shine told her she needed "to let this one go," according to the lawsuit. Shine, who could not immediately be reached, told the Times that Tantaros never approached him with any harassment claims about Ailes.

Tantaros also claims that she was also subject to unwanted advances by O'Reilly, one of the network's most popular primetime hosts.

"Ailes did not act alone," the lawsuit states. "He may have been the primary culprit, but his actions were condoned by his most senior lieutenants, who engaged in a concerted effort to silence Tantaros by threats, humiliation and retaliation."

Fox News has declined to comment on the allegations due to pending litigation.
CNNMoney (New York)

Greta Van Susteren's sudden departure from the network is just the latest aftershock. Uncertainty abounds -- not so much about the business, which remains rock solid, but about its broadcasters.

Fox's parent company has settled with Gretchen Carlson and several other women who accused Ailes of harassment. But at least one lawsuit is still outstanding.

The network has holes to patch at 2 p.m., Carlson's old time slot, and 7 p.m., Van Susteren's hour. Several other reporters and commentators are also heading for the exits. And the contracts of Fox's biggest stars are coming due soon.

One of those stars, Megyn Kelly, just hired a personal publicist to help her navigate through a book launch and a contract negotiation. Kelly will surely be asked about Ailes during her book tour in November.

That's just one of many reasons why the Ailes aftershocks will continue to be felt after the presidential election.

This is the most tumultuous time in the history of the network, which turns 20 next month.

Two longtime executives, Bill Shine and Jack Abernethy, were named co-presidents last month. The two men, along with their boss Rupert Murdoch, are figuring out what a post-Ailes Fox News looks like.

So far it's been mostly about subtraction. Van Susteren is just the highest profile departure; weekend "Fox & Friends" co-host Anna Kooiman said goodbye on Sunday, citing her husband's impending move to Australia.

"Fox & Friends" meteorologist Maria Molina signed off on Tuesday, citing a move to Michigan to pursue her Ph.D.

More than half a dozen Ailes lieutenants have also left since July 21, the day Ailes resigned under pressure.

Such turnover, both on air and off air, is highly unusual at Fox.

Some of the departures would have happened anyway -- political analyst Kirsten Powers, for instance, moved from Fox to CNN last month. But other talent changes are connected to the end of Ailes' tenure. Ailes' successors decided to let longtime contributor Bo Dietl's contract expire over the summer.

Dietl, the founder of a private investigations firm, reportedly conducted P.I. work for Ailes.

Other hosts and commentators who were especially close to Ailes are also likely to leave in the coming months.

In a strange twist, lawyer and Fox News contributor Susan Estrich is one of Ailes' personal lawyers in the harassment suits. Estrich's bio is still listed on Fox's web site.

Van Susteren's bio and blog were deleted just as soon as Fox announced her departure on Tuesday. The swift and bitter breakup was the result of a failed negotiation by Van Susteren and her husband John Coale.

Coale said Tuesday that there is "possible litigation in the future" between Van Susteren and Fox.

By removing her from the airwaves immediately, Fox News executives were sending a message: that no one host or commentator or reporter is bigger than Fox as a whole.

"We have a deep bench" is a mantra among the bosses. And it is accurate. But the network faces a big challenge next year when the contracts for all three prime time hosts -- Kelly, Bill O'Reilly and Sean Hannity -- are set to expire.

Even before then, Shine and Abernethy have to find a new host for Van Susteren's pivotal time slot, which leads into O'Reilly and the rest of prime time. Veteran anchorman Brit Hume is taking over the time slot, but only through Election Day.

On the bright side for Fox, the talent revolt by Ailes loyalists that was rumored back in July never actually transpired.

Van Susteren is the only host known to have exercised the "key man clause" in her contract that allowed her to follow Ailes out the door.

But many Fox hosts and reporters are still eager to find out what's going to change -- and what won't -- at the network.

Fox's high ratings and even higher profits depend on a consistent editorial tone and a loyal audience.

There was, at least, one bit of good news for Fox on Tuesday. Longtime 4 p.m. host Neil Cavuto, who had to take a medical leave in June for open heart surgery, returned to the airwaves.

Coale (her husband) said Tuesday that there is "possible litigation in the future" between Van Susteren and Fox.