Fox Settles With Gretchen Carlson Over Roger Ailes Sex Harassment Claims

Gretchen Carlson, a former anchor at Fox News, filed suit on July 6, leading to Roger Ailes’s ouster two weeks later. Credit Bryan Anselm for The New York Times

Story by New York Times
Written by John Koblin and Michael M. Grynbaum

The parent company of Fox News said on Tuesday that it had settled a lawsuit with its former anchor Gretchen Carlson, who said that Roger Ailes had sexually harassed her when he was chairman of the network.

A 21st Century Fox Corporation news release did not specify a settlement amount, but a person briefed on the settlement said that it amounted to $20 million. The person also said that Mr. Ailes was responsible for a portion of the payment, but Susan Estrich, Mr. Ailes’s lawyer, wrote in an email, “Mr. Ailes is not contributing anything.”

The person also said that at least two other women had settled with Fox stemming from complaints they voiced to investigators from the law firm Paul, Weiss, , Wharton & Garrison, which 21st Century Fox hired to look into the accusations against Mr. Ailes.

In its statement, the company apologized for the behavior, saying, “We sincerely regret and apologize for the fact that Gretchen was not treated with the respect and dignity that she and all of our colleagues deserve.”

Mr. Ailes resigned from Fox News on July 21, two weeks after Ms. Carlson filed her suit. He received a $40 million settlement when he left.

Additionally, Fox News abruptly announced — just minutes after 21st Century Fox confirmed the settlement with Ms. Carlson — the departure of Greta Van Susteren, one of the network’s most recognizable talents. Ms. Van Susteren had been with Fox News for 14 years, and her departure was effective immediately: Brit Hume will take over her 7 p.m. time slot, beginning on Tuesday night.

A financial disagreement with the network led to Ms. Van Susteren’s exit, according to a person familiar with the situation. Ms. Van Susteren was only informed in writing on Tuesday of her departure, the person said, and had expected to go on the air Tuesday night.

Her contract was not immediately up for renewal, the person said.

In a Facebook post on Tuesday, Ms. Van Susteren wrote that she decided to leave the network late last week, saying, “Fox has not felt like home to me for a few years.” She said that she “could not wait” because of a time-limited exit clause in her contract.

Ms. Van Susteren’s husband, John P. Coale, said in a phone interview on Tuesday that his wife exercised what is known as “key man clause’’ on Friday, which allowed her to leave if Mr. Ailes was not in control.

He said, “There’s so much chaos, it’s very hard to work there.” He said the timing of her departure with the announcement of the settlement with Ms. Carlson was a “coincidence.”

Asked about why she had exercised the key man clause, he said, “There’s more than meets the eye” and that there “might be litigation in the future” so he did not want to talk further.

In a statement, Mr. Hume said of taking over Ms. Van Susteren’s time slot, “I am happy to take on this assignment for the balance of this extraordinary election.”

Fox News’s co-presidents, Bill Shine and Jack Abernethy, said in a statement, “We are grateful for Greta’s many contributions over the years and wish her continued success.”

No statement was provided by Ms. Van Susteren.

The evidence that Ms. Carlson had in her sexual harassment case was damning, according to another person with knowledge of the settlement. For a year and a half, she had been recording her meetings with Mr. Ailes on her cellphone (in an interview with The New York Times in July, Ms. Carlson said she had been in “between six and 10” meetings with Mr. Ailes where he made provocative comments).

The vast majority of the remarks quoted directly in her lawsuit against Mr. Ailes — including lines like: “I think you and I should have had a sexual relationship a long time ago and then you’d be good and better and I’d be good and better” — were taken straight from the recordings, the person said.

Officials at 21st Century Fox became aware of the recordings after Ms. Carlson’s lawyers spoke to Paul, Weiss investigators, about three weeks after she filed the lawsuit on July 6. Settlement talks started shortly thereafter, and a deal was reached in mid-August, the person said. As part of the settlement, Ms. Carlson signed a confidentiality agreement.

Ms. Carlson issued a statement saying she was “ready to move on to the next chapter of my life in which I will redouble my efforts to empower women in the workplace. I want to thank all the brave women who came forward to tell their own stories and the many people across the country who embraced and supported me in their #StandWithGretchen.’’