Fox News considering end for The O’Reilly Factor: Report
Specifically, a report from New York Magazine suggests that the network is reportedly looking at finding a way to send the series hosted by Bill O’Reilly into the sunset, with one of the major reasons for it being that they’ve lost such an enormous amount of sponsors. As a matter of fact, the list is so vast that it may even topple the number lost by Glenn Beck.
The report also notes that there is some internal division regarding whether or not O’Reilly should depart, with executives Rupert Murdoch and his sons being at odds over what to do. The host remains under fire following the revelation that Fox News allegedly has settled several lawsuits regarding proper misconduct between the political pundit and many female employees.
If there is one thing we’ve for sure seen in the past eight years of doing this job, it is that allegations of this magnitude don’t go away. If O’Reilly comes back, every advertiser on The Factor will be inundated with criticism over their choice to have advertisements air during the program. As a result of that, they could find themselves in a familiar spot, one in which they have to determine if they want to pull the show then. If they do it now, they may be able to save themselves further aggravation down the road. If they decide to wait on it, there is a reasonably good chance that they find themselves in a position where they have to make the move down the road. Effectively, they are facing a choice where they can try to make the move now, or deal with further backlash. The choice seems fairly simple to us.
Will the network take a ratings hit? Probably, and you have to figure that O’Reilly, regardless of our opinion of him, will probably be hired somewhere else. If it’s a subscription model, nobody has to worry about advertisers. All options could be out there.
Do you think that Fox News will pull the plug on this, and in your eyes, should they have done that already? Share in the comments below! (Photo: Fox News.)