Bill O'Reilly's days as a commentator for Fox News seem to be numbered. With more than a dozen advertisers pulling ads from The O'Reilly Factor, all signs indicate that Fox News’s parent company, 21st Century Fox, is looking to sever ties with the controversial host. Amidst a number of sexual harassment allegations resulting in five settlements totaling $13 million paid by either Fox News network or O'Reilly himself, support for the conservative news host has waned as legal investigations into Mr. O’Reilly’s behavior persists.
The most recent allegation of sexual harassment against the media personality comes from an African American woman who also worked for the network.
Attorney Lisa Bloom, who is representing the unnamed clerical worker, alleges that Mr. O'Reilly called her client “hot chocolate” and engaged in acts of racial and sexual harassment against her. “He would never talk to her, not even hello, except to grunt at her like a wild boar,” Bloom tells The Hollywood Reporter. “He would leer at her. He would always do this when no one else was around and she was scared.” Bloom went on to say that her client was afraid that if she spoke up, she would be fired. “Now that’s she’s aware this is all in the news, she’s decided to phone in a complaint to the Fox News hotline,” Bloom says.
The New York Times reported that Mr.O’Reilly’s future at the network is expected to be discussed on Thursday at a board meeting for Fox News’s parent company, 21st Century Fox.