HLN’s Robin Meade on Roger Ailes Sexual Harassment Claims: ‘It Was Eye Opening’
HLN’s longtime morning-news anchor Robin Meade chimed in Sunday about former Fox News anchor Gretchen Carlson’s claims of being sexually harassed by CEO Roger Ailes, who was subsequently ousted as CEO of the 21st Century Fox-owned cable network.
“Maybe I’m lucky, but I count myself as someone who didn’t come across it,” in her news career, Meade said Sunday at the Television Critics Association summer press tour when asked about Carlson’s harassment claim. “I didn’t witness it and I haven’t been subjected to it. So for someone else to claim to be subjected to that, to me it was eye opening.”
Meade was joined at press tour Sunday by fellow HLN hosts Erica Hill and Michaela Pereira. The anchors and HLN programming VP Stephanie Toff were onhand to promote HLN’s recent news-focused relaunch, but the conversation first went to Ailes and Carlson. Ailes stepped down this month as CEO of Fox News following allegations from Carlson over repeated harassment and a subsequent investigation by the parent company.
“I commend her for having the chutzpah to speak up,” Pereira said of Carlson. She added, “I think I’m not surprised by anything that occurs in the world anymore, to be honest.”
Last week, another Fox News employee, Laurie Luhn, detailed 20 years of alleged harassment suffered at Ailes’ hands.
“I think that’s a very brave, courageous thing to do and I hope that it gets a conversation started,” Hill said.
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