O’Reilly suggests Kelly made Fox News ‘look bad’ by airing Ailes allegations
Fox News host Megyn Kelly has responded to colleague Bill O’Reilly’s suggestion that she is making the network “look bad” by alleging in a new book that former Fox News chief Roger Ailes sexually harassed her for years.
“Roger Ailes made the company look bad,” Kelly said on CBS’ “This Morning” on Wednesday, a day after O’Reilly refused to discuss Kelly’s memoir on the same show.
“I’m not interested in making my network look bad,” O’Reilly said.
On his primetime show, “The O’Reilly Factor,” Tuesday night, O’Reilly devoted his “Tip of the Day” segment to “loyalty.”
“If somebody is paying you a wage, you owe that person or company allegiance,” O’Reilly said without mentioning Kelly by name. “Factor tip of the day: Loyalty is good.”
Kelly, though, says she consulted with Fox News CEO Rupert Murdoch and his son, News Corp executive co-chairman Lachlan Murdoch, before going public with the allegations.
“I am very proud of the fact that I discussed this with Rupert and Lachlan Murdoch before I wrote this chapter in my book,” Kelly said on Wednesday. “And we were all on the same page that this was an important chapter to include.”
According to Kelly, Ailes made unwanted sexual advances on numerous occasions beginning with inappropriate comments and culminating in a 2006 incident in which she says he tried to kiss her three times in his office. When she refused, Kelly said that Ailes asked her, “When is your contract up?” Ailes has “categorically” denied the allegations.
Kelly also dismissed O’Reilly’s argument that if she didn’t “like what was happening in workplace,” she should’ve gone to human resources “or leave.”
Kelly said that she told a supervisor about Ailes’ attempt to get physical with her, but the supervisor brushed it off, saying Ailes was “likely just smitten” and she should try to avoid him, which she says she did.
“A women can be harassed and then go on to have a good working relationship with the man harassing her,” Kelly said on ABC’s “Good Morning America.” “That is what happened in my case.”
In July, Gretchen Carlson, a former Fox News host, filed suit against Ailes, alleging he forced her out of a job for refusing his unwanted sexual advances and complaining about persistent harassment in the newsroom. Ailes, who denied the allegations, was ousted from Fox after several more women came forward with similar stories.
In September, Carlson settled her suit with Ailes for a reported $20 million.
Kelly said she didn’t consider coming forward earlier because it would’ve derailed her career.
“It would have been a suicide mission,” she said.
