News

Fox News Co-President Bill Shine Resigns

The troubled network's interim CEO, Rupert Murdoch, confirmed Shine's resignation in an email sent to staffers.

Published May 1, 2017

 (360b/Shutterstock)
Image Via 360b/Shutterstock

Fox News Channel (FNC) Co-President Bill Shine resigned on 1 May 2017, becoming the latest high-ranking departure at the conservative news channel.

The network's interim CEO, Rupert Murdoch, confirmed Shine's departure in an email to employees saying, "I know Bill was respected and liked by everybody at Fox News. We will miss him."

Murdoch also announced in the email that Suzanne Scott would become president of the network's programming division, while Jay Wallace would be president of the news division.

In late April 2017, Shine reportedly asked Murdoch's sons James and Lachlan -- who are Fox News' CEO and co-chairman, respectively -- to release a statement supporting him in light of the network's recent negative press.

Shine resigned nearly nine months after the network's former chair, Roger Ailes, did the same amid multiple allegations of sexual harassment on his part. Shine had reportedly been named in at least four lawsuits accusing Ailes of engaging in harassing or discriminatory behavior.

In one suit, former host Andrea Tantaros said that Shine and other company executives used "digital tools and computer/telephony 'hacking,' allied media, social media and surreptitious surveillance" against her. Fox attorneys have denied the allegation.

In addition to Ailes and Shine, Fox News' top-rated commentator, Bill O'Reilly, was let go by the network on 19 April 2017 after a slew of sexual harassment settlements came to light and his show lost more than half its advertisers in a week.

Sources

Grynbaum, Michael M. and Steel, Emily. "Fox News Executive Departs Amid Turmoil." New York Times. 1 May 2017.

Byers, Dylan. "Fox News' Critics Ask: Is Bill Shine the Man Who Knew Too Much?" CNNMoney. 27 April 2017.

Folkenflik, David. "Ailes Accuser Says Fox News Execs Ordered Eavesdropping On Her Digital Devices." NPR. 24 April 2017.

@BraddJaffy. "Fox News co-president Bill Shine has resigned, Rupert Murdoch says in email to employees (obtained by NBC's @jolingkent)." Twitter. 1 May 2017. https://twitter.com/BraddJaffy/status/859117867077390336

Arturo Garcia is a former writer for Snopes.