One week ago, Jeanine Pirro found herself in hot water, after claiming on her top-rated Saturday night opinion show, claiming that Minnesota freshman congresswoman Ilhan Omar is “sharia compliant” and not loyal to the U.S. Constitution because she wears a hijab.
After a week of controversy—in which at least three advertisers said they would be removing ads from her show— Fox News said it would not air Justice With Judge Jeanine tonight. An encore airing of Scandalous will be broadcast in her time slot instead.
The network declined to say if Pirro had been benched as a result of last week’s remarks—“We’re not commenting on internal scheduling matters,” said a Fox News spokesperson—and Pirro also isn’t commenting on the scheduling move. She hasn’t tweeted since the backlash over her remarks began last Sunday.
Fox News had previously released a statement last Sunday saying “we strongly condemn Jeanine Pirro’s comments about Rep. Ilhan Omar,” adding,“they do not reflect those of the network and we have addressed the matter with her directly.”
That statement was paired with one from Pirro herself, who unlike her employer, didn’t seem to acknowledge that she had crossed a line: “My intention was to ask a question and start a debate, but of course because one is Muslim does not mean you don’t support the Constitution.”
But in the days that followed, at least three advertisers—NerdWallet, Novo Nordish and Letgo—said they would be removing ads from Pirro’s show. Meanwhile, another Fox News host, Tucker Carlson, was weathering his own controversy—and subsequent advertiser defection— this week after controversial remarks concerning women he made nearly a decade ago were discovered by liberal advocacy group Media Matters.
Fox News told TVNewser that no ad revenue has been lost as a result of those ads being pulled; inventory has just been shifted to other dayparts and programs.
Carlson has remained on the air all week, and noted on-air Monday night that his network continued to support him. “Fox News is behind us, as they have been since the very first day. Toughness is a rare quality in a TV network, and we are grateful for that,” Carlson said on-air. “Second, we’ve always apologized when we’re wrong, and will continue to do that. That’s what decent people do. They apologize. But we will never bow to the mob. Ever. No matter what.”