Former Fox News host Gretchen Carlson recently filed a lawsuit against CEO Roger Ailes for sexual harassment. What she argues is that Ailes refused to renew her contract at the network, where she co-hosted "Fox and Friends" until 2013 and hosted "The Real Story with Gretchen Carlson" until recently, for refusing to sleep with him and speaking up about what she felt was a discriminatory workplace.
In fact, she even alleges that he told her, “I think you and I should have had a sexual relationship a long time ago and then you’d be good and better and I’d be good and better.” Of course, Ailes denies the allegations, responding with a statement that said, “This defamatory lawsuit is not only offensive, it is wholly without merit and will be defended vigorously.”
However, something that is also interesting about this case is a video that was put out by Bloomberg Politics on Thursday. In the mash-up, that I have linked here and below, there are several clips where Carlson’s "Fox & Friends" male co-hosts consistently comment on her appearance. In one clip, one male colleague states, “Look at her today, beautiful dress, you look wonderful.” In another, another man suggests that she should ride a mechanical bull in a skirt. These segments are cringe-inducing and tough to sit through, especially when you view Carlson’s face after each comment.
Now, full disclosure, I am not a frequent viewer of Fox News. I have maybe seen a bit of "Fox and Friends" and "The O’Reilly Factor" as I rushed to find the remote to change the channel, or during comedic bits put on by "The Daily Show" or "Last Week Tonight", but not really much more. This is what made this story interesting to me, not because of the validity of the allegations, since that is difficult to know at this time, but due to the video I just discussed. If this is frequently the way Fox News treats its female reporters, it may make sense why the conservative message, which is one that Fox News preaches, is losing my generation.
For Carlson, this behavior may not be out of character for her. Even though critics are quick to point out two passages from her book, Getting Real where she heaped praises on Ailes, she has spoken out about similar issues in the past. In fact, in 2012, Carlson walked off the set of “Fox and Friends” after fellow host Brian Kilmeade made the sexist comment that, “Women are everywhere. We’re letting them play golf and tennis now. It’s out of control.” After that she stood up and while walking away stated, “You know what? You read the headlines, since men are so great. Go ahead.” To this, Kilmeade simply responded with, “Finally! Leaving an all-male crew.”
The other man who was on the set at the time of Carlson’s walkout was Steve Doocy, who Carlson has accused of engaging in a “pattern and practice of severe and pervasive sexual harassment” that included “mocking her during commercial breaks, shunning her off air, refusing to engage with her on air, [and] belittling her contributions to the show.”
After the lawsuit was filed, several Fox News stars came out to question Carlson’s motives for filing it. The most fervent, to me, came from Greta Van Susteren, who hosts the show "On the Record w/ Greta Van Susteren". She claims that she has never had an inappropriate encounter with Ailes in her 15 years with the network, even going as far as to claim, “Of course, the first thing that occurred to me is that, unfortunately, we have a disgruntled employee, a colleague.” She also stated that she does not believe the claims due to her experience and relationships at Fox News, saying, “"People come to me because I've been there so long. That's why this doesn't have any ring of truth to me. I would have heard it. People don't keep things silent."
However, for every critique of her story by Fox News hosts, there seemed to be reprieves by former employees that claimed to backup Carlson’s arguments about the news environment and Roger Ailes. One former employee claimed that Ailes told her that she could only wear dresses on air, while another said that “He [Ailes] asked me to turn around so he can see my ass.”
One former Fox News journalist who has discussed the revelations is Diane Dimond. According to her, the network is “a boys’ shop. You do not complain. You’ve got to wear your skirts short and your heels high, and you’ve got to put lots of makeup on if you’re a woman.” Dimond even went on to discuss her experience seeing high-profile women in the entertainment industry who file discrimination lawsuits, and end up not working in the field ever again. She stated, “I’ll tell you what ― Roger Ailes is a guy who doesn’t conduct a clean fight all the time, and I daresay that she probably hammered the nail on her career. I don’t know that anyone will hire her again after this.”
Hopefully, in the next few weeks we can get a better picture of this situation, but based on what we have right now, it seems to be a situation of a man and a network refusing to change with the times. They seem to be stuck in a world in which women are meant to be eye-candy and men are allowed leeway to express overt sexist viewpoints. Hopefully, this will not end Carlson’s career and we can get some type of result that leads to a change of attitude by Fox News and Ailes.
