NEW YORK, N.Y. — Former Fox News host Megyn Kelly has come forward with claims that she too was sexually harassed by former “O’Reilly Factor” host Bill O’Reilly.
Kelly, who jumped ship from Fox News earlier this year, voiced the allegations against O’Reilly Monday on her NBC show “Megyn Kelly Today” in response to a New York Times report which claimed that O’Reilly had paid Lis Wiehl, a former Fox News legal analyst, $32 million to settle sexual harassment allegations.
“I spent this weekend on the phone nonstop, talking to many women at Fox News and otherwise, who are deeply disturbed over the latest New York Times report,” said Kelly.
“That is a jaw-dropping figure” said Kelly, citing the $32 million settlement figure.
Referencing the civil jury damages relating to the murders of Ronald Goldman and Nicole Brown, Kelly said: “O. J. Simpson was ordered to pay the Goldman and Brown families $33.5 million for the murders of Ron and Nicole. What on earth would justify that amount? What awfulness went on?”
Going on to discuss a portion of her memoir in which she claims she had also complained to management of Fox News about O’Reilly’s inappropriate behavior, Kelly says she too had been a victim of his unwanted advances.
“Perhaps he didn’t realize the kind of message his criticism sends to young women across this country about how men continue to view the issues of speaking out about sexual harassment,” Kelly read from an email that she says she sent to the co-presidents of Fox News (https://www.today.com/news/read-email-megyn-kelly-sent-fox-news-execs-about-bill-t117863). “Perhaps he didn’t realize that his exact attitude of shaming women about shutting the hell up on grounds that they will shame the company is in part how Fox News got into the decade-long Ailes mess to begin with. Perhaps it’s his own history of harassment of women, which has, as you both know, resulted in payouts to more than one woman, including recently, that blinded him to the folly of saying anything other than ‘I am just so sorry for the women of this company who never should have had to go through that.”
O’Reilly was quick to hit back against Kelly’s allegations on Monday, calling her claims “uncomprehensible”.
“She did not file a complaint. Not that I know of,” he said in an interview with Glenn Beck. “I don’t know why Megyn Kelly is doing what she’s doing. I don’t know why…It is incomprehensible.”
In a separate podcast on Monday O’Reilly turned his anger toward the New York Times. He accused the publication of printing falsehoods and insinuated the newspaper was at fault for the death of former Fox News host Eric Bolling’s son, who died shortly after a Times report that claimed Bolling had sexually harassed a co-worker. Although toxicolgy results are still pending, sources close to the case have claimed the college student’s death a possible suicide.
“I urge you to think about what you put in your newspaper,” O’Reilly said. “Eric Bolling’s son is dead. He’s dead because of allegations made — in my opinion and I know this to be true — against Mr. Bolling.”
“We have physical proof that this is bullshit. Bullshit. Okay? So it’s on you if you want to destroy my children further. Alright, cause it’s all crap,” O’Reilly continued. “Why don’t you be human beings for once. This is horrible.
“It’s horrible what I went through. Horrible what my family went through. This is crap. And you know it. It’s politically and financially motivated. And we can prove it with shocking information.”
Turning his thoughts back to Kelly, O’Reilly said, “I don’t know why she’s doing what she is doing. I just don’t know. I have helped her dramatically in her career.”
In a statement posted to his website (https://www.billoreilly.com/g/October-21-Statement/881.html), O’Reilly refudiates some of the claims against him and promises to address the allegations further tonight on No Spin News, his nightly podcast.
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