A spokesman for former Fox News host Bill O’Reilly slammed a New York Times article that appeared Saturday. The Times “printed leaked information provided by anonymous sources that is out of context, false, defamatory, and obviously designed to embarrass Bill O’Reilly and to keep him from competing in the marketplace,” said Mark Fabiani. The Times reported that the month after O’Reilly struck a $32 million agreement with a longtime network analyst to settle sexual harassment allegations, Fox News gave him a 4-year contract extension.
Fox News parent 21st Century Fox responded to Times the story as well, saying O’Reilly’s new contract was made at a time typical for renewals, and “added protections for the company specifically aimed at harassment, including that Mr. O’Reilly could be dismissed if the company was made aware of other allegations or if additional relevant information was obtained in a company investigation.” Fox News exercised that clause in April.
As for the Times, editor Dean Baquet said, “Mr. Fabiani addresses everything but what the story actually says. This article, like our previous reporting on the subject, is accurate and deeply reported and we welcome any challenge to the facts.”
