Fred Prouser/Reuters
21st Century Fox officially announced Thursday that Fox News CEO and chairman Roger Ailes has resigned his role effective immediately. Rupert Murdoch will assume the role of chairman and acting CEO of both the Fox News Channel and Fox Business Network. Ailes’s resignation comes amid sexual-harassment allegations by former Fox anchor Gretchen Carlson, along with reports that star anchor Megyn Kelly and others told of similar harassment to independent investigators hired by 21st Century Fox. Ailes’s fall as the head of Fox News proves correct the reporting of New York magazine writer Gabriel Sherman, who first broke the news that the 76-year-old media mogul was on the way out.
In a letter to Murdoch, obtained by Drudge Report, Ailes wrote: “I am proud that we have built Fox News and Fox Business Channels into powerful and lucrative news organizations that inform our audience and reward our shareholders. I take particular pride in the role that I have played advancing the careers of the many women I have promoted to executive and on-air positions. Many of these talented journalists have deservedly become household names known for their intelligence and strength, whether reporting the news, fair and balanced, and offering exciting opinions on our opinion programs.”