Here’s a talking point for you, Bill. Over 450 sexual assault survivors wrote an open letter urging 21st Century Fox CEO James Murdoch to fire Bill O’Reilly, holding him accountable for his history of sexual assault and harassment. Via UltraViolet, the letter is collecting signatures from the public.
The letter is just the latest development in a renewed effort to take “The O’Reilly Factor” commentator off the air, which was sparked by a recent New York Times article about the allegations against O’Reilly and the exorbitant amount of money Fox News has spent to protect him. According to the report, five women “received payouts from either Mr. O’Reilly or the company in exchange for agreeing to not pursue litigation or speak about their accusations against him. The agreements totaled about $13 million.”
Since the article’s April 1 publication, more than 60 companies have pulled their ads from “The O’Reilly Factor’s” time slot and Fox has launched an investigation into accusations against O’Reilly. Lisa Bloom, the attorney for one of O’Reilly’s accusers, told The Hollywood Reporter, “I’m told that [Fox is] taking it seriously, and they are going to do the investigation that’s legally required of them.”
There have also been reports that O’Reilly’s behavior towards Megyn Kelly — and Fox News’ determination to stand by him — was part of the reason that she left the cable news network in January. Kelly was sexually harassed at the network by former chairman Roger Ailes, and went public with her experiences shortly after Gretchen Carlson came forward with her own. Ailes promptly retired and had his lawyer publicly deny the charges. A feature film about the Ailes scandal is in the works.
In addition to his infuriating treatment of women, O’Reilly openly laughed at the United Airlines video (in which a man was beaten and dragged from a plane), has repeatedly made racist comments on-air, claimed the murder of Trayvon Martin was no one’s fault but Trayvon Martin’s, and suggested slavery wasn’t all that bad.
UltraViolet reports that it has been fighting for a full investigation into O’Reilly’s pattern of sexual abuse since August 2016. Since then, the anti-sexism organization has launched and maintained the online ad campaign “Have You Been Harassed by Bill?” UltraViolet is also holding a protest outside Fox News’ NYC HQ today. A plane will fly over Manhattan reading: “Fox: #DropOReilly, The Sexual Predator.”
The full letter to James Murdoch is below, courtesy of UltraViolet. You can add your name here.
Dear Mr. James Murdoch,
We are sexual assault and domestic violence survivors and their loved ones, writing once again to ask you to rid Fox News of its culture of gender-based abuse. We hope the latest revelation and resulting consequences finally convince you to stop perpetuating a culture of harassment, abuse, and discrimination and fire anchor and sexual predator Bill O’Reilly.
The lurid details of Mr. O’Reilly’s crimes, and Fox News’ role in protecting him while systematically destroying the women he has victimized, are disturbing yet completely unsurprising. We know firsthand that survivors of sexual crimes are silenced, shamed, and vilified by perpetrators and onlookers, and 21st Century Fox has gone as far as to protect O’Reilly from his accusers with monetary payouts.
Mr. O’Reilly’s disdain and lack of respect for women are now apparent both on-screen and off. The longer Fox delays Mr. O’Reilly’s termination, the further it permanently cements itself as a company where rape culture not only thrives but is promoted to viewers.
Mr. Murdoch, we write to you in particular. It seems that among Fox’s leadership, you are the single person likely to advocate for us. We implore you to usher in a better version of Fox News, one that is safer for women inside and outside the newsroom, by holding accountable the most visible perpetrator of sexual abuse in your company.
Fox’s complicity in sexual harassment is part of a larger culture that allows for and ignores sexual assault and violence against women. Fox continues to be part of this epidemic each day it employs O’Reilly and protects perpetrators of sexual harassment.
We urge you to choose women’s safety and justice for survivors by getting rid of O’Reilly once and for all.
Signed,
Sexual assault survivors, domestic violence survivors, and their family and friend
