O'Reilly questions Kelly loyalty
NEW YORK — Bill O'Reilly is questioning his Fox News Channel colleague Megyn Kelly's loyalty for writing in her just-published memoir and talking about accusations that former Fox chief Roger Ailes made unwanted sexual advances on her a decade ago.
Kelly responded that she had the support of her new bosses to write about the incidents and “sunlight is the best disinfectant.”
Meanwhile, Kelly appeared under attack Wednesday in an unusual forum: people flooding Amazon.com with negative reviews of her book, “Settle For More,” in what her publisher regards as an orchestrated campaign.
The unusual back-and-forth between two prime-time hosts is a headache for Fox News, which declined to comment on Wednesday. O'Reilly, 67, has long been Fox's most popular personality. Kelly, 45, is seen as a major part of Fox's future and network management is eager to sign her beyond her current contract, which expires next July.
It began Tuesday on “CBS This Morning,” where O'Reilly was a guest promoting his children's book, “Give Please a Chance.” Host Norah O'Donnell asked him about Kelly's book, and he said he wasn't interested in it.
“In sexual harassment?” O'Donnell asked.
“I'm not interested in basically litigating something that is finished that makes my network look bad,” O'Reilly replied. “I'm not interested in making my network look bad. At all.”Kelly accused Ailes of making sexually suggestive comments when she was new to Fox and trying to kiss her against her will. Ailes has denied the accusations. Her private testimony about the incident was seen as a key to Fox's parent company ousting Ailes this past summer.Later, on his show, O'Reilly offered his “tip of the day” that “loyalty is good.” He didn't mention Kelly's name but the intention seemed clear.“If somebody is paying you a wage, you owe that person or company allegiance,” he said. “You don't like what's happening in the workplace, go to HR, or leave. I've done that. And then take the action afterward if you feel aggrieved. There are labor laws in this country. But don't run down the concern that supports you by trying to undermine it.”An hour later, at the end of her show and again on CBS Wednesday, Kelly said she had discussed the chapter she wrote with Rupert and Lachlan Murdoch of Fox's parent company 21st Century Fox. Kelly said in an interview Tuesday that she believed it was important to tell the story to empower other women who may be going through something similar and to impress upon companies the importance of being vigilant against harassment.Asked by CBS' O'Donnell whether she believed she was making Fox News look bad, Kelly said, “I believe that Roger Ailes made the company look bad.”In an appearance with Don Imus on Wednesday, O'Reilly said he believed Kelly is a “very smart, talented woman” and that he had no beef with her.But he said if another network is “going to try and bait me to say bad things about my network, I am not gonna do it.”
