Fox News Fires Veteran Anchor After Sexual Misconduct Allegation
Ed Henry, co-host of the Fox News program “America’s Newsroom,” has been fired following an investigation into a claim of “willful sexual misconduct” made against him by a former employee, the network said Wednesday.
Henry had served as a co-anchor of “America’s Newsroom” since January, and had been with the network since 2011, according to TheWrap.
Previously, he had been the network’s chief White House correspondent and then its chief national correspondent. Prior to working at Fox News, he spent seven years at CNN.
“We would like to bring a very serious matter to your attention in an effort toward full transparency given the many actions we have taken to improve the culture here over the last four years,” an internal memo from Fox News Media CEO Suzanne Scott and network president and executive editor Jay Wallace reads.
“On Thursday, June 25, we received a complaint about Ed Henry from a former employee’s attorney involving willful sexual misconduct in the workplace years ago,” added the memo obtained by The Western Journal.
“We immediately retained an outside law firm (which has never represented Fox News in investigations or litigation) to independently investigate the claims. Ed was suspended the same day and removed from his on-air responsibilities pending investigation,” it said.
“Based on investigative findings, Ed has been terminated.”
Fox will search for a permanent replacement to co-host “America’s Newsroom” along with Sandra Smith, but in the meantime, a rotating cast of co-anchors will take Henry’s place.
“As all of you know, in January 2017 we overhauled our entire Human Resources operation and instituted extensive mandatory annual Inclusion and Harassment Prevention training which has since educated our entire workforce,” the Fox memo read.
“We encourage any employee who has a sexual harassment, discrimination or misconduct complaint of any form to report it immediately, as we have said repeatedly over the last four years.”
Ed Henry was terminated following an investigation into sexual misconduct. Here’s the internal memo from Fox: pic.twitter.com/jrBqJKL1En
— Aidan McLaughlin (@aidnmclaughlin) July 1, 2020
Henry had previously been sidelined from the network in 2016 following reports that the married journalist had an affair with a Las Vegas hostess.
“We recently became aware of Ed’s personal issues and he’s taking some time off to work things out,” a Fox News spokesperson told TheWrap at the time.
Sources told Page Six in 2016 that Henry had a “morality clause” in his contract that meant he could be terminated for embarrassing the network.
“This raises serious questions about Ed’s lack of judgment, especially given his position as a journalist,” then-Fox News president Roger Ailes said about the scandal at the time.
Attorney Douglas Wigdor said in a statement to CNN on Wednesday that he is representing Henry’s accuser.
Wigdor also said he wasn’t “presently at liberty to share further information.”
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