Bill O’Reilly is in trouble with a handful of women.
And, for a change, not one of them is Beyonce.
On Saturday, The New York Times reported that O’Reilly has settled five different claims from women over the years, each allegation rooted in some form of sexual harassment.
According to the newspaper, the women received payouts that totaled $ 13 million in exchange for NOT pursuing litigation or speaking out in public against O’Reilly.
The payouts either came from O’Reilly, Fox News or a combination of the anchor and the network.
Two of these settlements took place after the former chairman of Fox News, Roger Ailes, was forced to resign last July in the wake of his own sexual harassment scandal.
After numerous complaints were lodged in public against Ailes, the company said it did not tolerate behavior that “disrespects women or contributes to an uncomfortable work environment.”
Based on the Times article, all five women who made allegations against O’Reilly either worked for the long-time reporter or appeared on his primetime program.
They complained about a such behavior as:
- Verbal abuse.
- Lewd comments.
- Unwanted sexual advances.
- Phone calls in which it sounded as if O’Reilly was masturbating, according to documents and interviews.
For real. We’re not making that last bullet point up.
One of the five lawsuits centered on ex-producer Andrea Mackris; made headlines in 2004.
Another lawsuit involved Fox News employee Juliet Huddy and was first reported in January.
The other three claims had not been known until this time.
A sixth woman, Dr. Wendy Walsh, told The New York Times that she turned down O’Reilly’s advances and he later didn’t follow through on an offer to make her a network contributor.
In a release, attorney Lisa Bloom said Walsh will speak out at a press conference Monday in Los Angeles and they “will reveal their new demands to the network.”
Bloom also compared O’Reilly to another famous figure while talking to CNN on Sunday.
She said the many allegations against him and the way in which they were swept under the rug reminded her of Bill Cosby.
“How many women have to come forward?” Bloom asked on CNN’s “Reliable Sources.” “How many millions of dollars have to get paid before Fox News takes sexual harassment seriously?”
Referencing Cosby, the formerly beloved comedian who has been accused of drugging and raping dozens of women, Bloom added:
“In my opinion, this network is the Bill Cosby of corporate America. Women over and over again are driven out.”
The issues surrounding O’Reilly are similar to the sexual harassment charges against Ailes.
Overall, ugly rumors regarding the treatment of women at Fox News have been permeating for years.
Former network host Andrea Tantaros, for example, is suing Ailes and top executives at Fox News, which she compared to a “Playboy Mansion-Like Cult.”
Both Gretchen Carlson and Megyn Kelly have left the network in recent years, both having claimed they were mistreated by executives there.
The O’Reilly Factor garners nearly four million viewers each night.
It is the most-watched show on cable news and has brought in more than $ 446 million in advertising revenue from 2014 to 2016, according to The New York Times.
“Just like other prominent and controversial people, I’m vulnerable to lawsuits from individuals who want me to pay them to avoid negative publicity,” O’Reilly said in a statement on his website in response to these allegations.
He concluded as follows:
“In my more than 20 years at Fox News Channel, no one has ever filed a complaint about me with the Human Resources Department, even on the anonymous hotline.”