Bill O’Reilly was forced out by Fox News this past Wednesday afternoon, but the fallout continues. Below are links to some stories about the saga that were published on Thursday evening/ Friday morning and are worth checking out:
- Politico’s Joe Pompeo writes about how O’Reilly and his legal team debated whether to share with 21st Century Fox an April 13 email from Mary Pat Bonner, a Democratic fundraiser and supporters of the watchdog group Media Matters, which had led an “advertiser education campaign.” Pompeo gained this intel from an email “accidentally” forwarded to him by a member of O’Reilly’s legal team: “So no formal sending to Rupert until after the call,” O’Reilly wrote in the email. “You all should know that I will not put up with much more from FNC.”
- Politico’s Jack Shafer writes how 21st Century Fox and Fox News Channel in particular have been given “an easy ride” throughout this ordeal. “If Ailes and O’Reilly had to walk the plank, why not current Fox co-presidents Bill Shine and Jack Abernethy?” Shafer wonders.
- The Hollywood Reporter’s Michael Wolff writes one of the more interesting pieces about the fallout, focusing on the rise and growing influence of 21st Century Fox CEO James Murdoch when it comes to the Fox News brand. “…this means that Fox News, that constant irritant in James’ view of himself as a progressive and visionary television executive, will begin to change. Virtually overnight.”
- New York Times Susan Chira, senior correspondent and editor on gender issues, writes a piece about how we shouldn’t automatically assume that Fox News’s company culture will change in the post-O’Reilly era.
- The New York Times’ Michael M. Grynbaum and Sapna Maheshwari write: “In the end, a fear among sponsors of a consumer revolt helped drive the final nail into O’Reilly’s coffin.”
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