Fox News has faced some major changes in recent months, and the
latest is the surprise departure of longtime host Greta Van Susteren.
She anchored On the Record w/ Greta Van Susteren for fourteen
years and became one of the most recognizable names on the network.
Viewers have gotten used to her coverage of current affairs, but it
turns out that she has a pretty solid reason for choosing to leave Fox
and On the Record. Van Susteren had this to say about her decision to move on in her career:
Yes, I have left the Fox News Channel. On Thursday night, I made my decision and informed Fox News of my decision that I was leaving Fox News Channel per my contract. Fox has not felt like home to me for a few years and I took advantage of the clause in my contract which allows me to leave now. The clause had a time limitation, meaning I could not wait.
It's hard to blame Greta Van Susteren for leaving a job if she no
longer felt at home in the environment. She's a high-profile media
personality who shouldn't have trouble finding a new outlet for her
career. If she didn't want to remain at Fox News
and doesn't necessarily need her job at Fox News, there was no reason
for her to stick around in an unhappy situation. The announcement that
she'd be leaving did feel somewhat abrupt, but it sounds like she was in
a time crunch to make the big call.
Greta Van Susteren may have had extra motivation to leave Fox News
thanks to recent events involving CEO Roger Ailes. Former Fox News host Gretchen Carlson filed a sexual harassment lawsuit
against Ailes that was distinctly ugly and drew lines in the sand at
Fox News. Van Susteren was one of the Fox News personalities who sided
with Ailes. Rumor had it that she would consider leaving the network if Ailes got the boot. Ailes ultimately resigned,
so Fox News never had to deal with the extra controversy of firing him.
Still, it may have been a contributing factor to Van Susteren leaving.
If her unrest has been brewing for years, the ousting of Ailes
coinciding with the expiration of her contract could have been enough to
drive her away from the network.
The announcement from Greta Van Susteren came via Facebook
post, and she shared her decision without hinting at any deep
bitterness. She was gracious about her staff, her crew, and her viewers.
The only clue that she harbored any ill will toward Fox News was her
comment that the network no longer felt like her home. Van Susteren
didn't burn any bridges with inflammatory remarks, but she doesn't seem
like she regrets her decision.
Greta Van Susteren may be gone from the airwaves for a while before she finds a new home, so be sure to check out our fall TV premiere schedule to see what you will be able to catch on the small screen in the near future.
No comments:
Post a Comment