A former Fox News host, Andrea Tantaros, has filed a lawsuit against the network, claiming that she was sexually harassed by former network chairman Roger Ailes and that Mr Ailes’ lieutenants punished her for her complaints.
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Andrea Tantaros described Fox in the lawsuit, filed Monday in NY, as a sex-fueled, Playboy Mansion-like cult. She said after she complained last spring about Ailes, one of his top deputies, William Shine, warned her that Ailes was a very powerful man and that she needed to let this one go..
Tantaros went public with sexual harassment allegations against Ailes in early August, claiming he made sexually charged comments about her appearance and asked her to “turn around” so he could get a look at her.
On Monday, former Fox News host Andrea Tantaros filed a lawsuit in the New York State Supreme Court in Manhattan.
Tantaros told Brown to stop and complained to Fox News Co-President Bill Shine, asking that Brown no longer be booked for the show, according to the suit.
The network even offered to pay Tantaros a sum “in the seven figures” if she would renounce the allegations against Ailes and other senior network personalities, including Bill O’Reilly, Bernstein said. Tantaros’ legal battles with Fox began last winter when the network said she had breached her employment contract by writing a book without getting network clearance.
Last month, it came out that prized anchor Megyn Kelly had also accused Ailes of sexual harassment.
The lawsuit claims she was suspended from Fox because she complained about all the sexual harassment she was subjected to by the network CEO, the famous on-air personality O’Reilly, and certain guests who also joined in on the behind-the-scenes culture at Fox. While on set, Brown allegedly told Tantaros she “would be fun to go to a nightclub with”.
This revelation was made shortly after former Fox host Gretchen Carlson lodged her own suit against Ailes, serving as just the beginning of a ruined reputation for the former Fox exec. Tantaros reportedly asked Shine if he had instructed Irena Briganti, Fox News head of publicity, to attack her. Fox News have not officially commented on the lawsuit. When she refused, the suit states, she was moved off the well-rated 5 p.m. show to a lower-rated midday show.
A Fox News source told Buzzfeed at the time that Tarantos couldn’t recall a specific instance of sexual harassment during an April 7 meeting. Andrea’s lawyer said that the excuse of her book being the reason she’s benched from Fox is nothing more than a sham to take the spotlight off the real reason Andrea is off the air.
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Brown sent an email to the Boston Globe shortly after hearing the details of Tantaros’ claims, saying all of her accusations were false.
