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Mercedes and Hyundai pull ads from Fox News' Bill O'Reilly show after sexual harassment claims

Five women have reportedly received payments from either 21st Century Fox or from Mr O’Reilly in exchange for agreeing not to sue or talk about their allegations

Gabrielle Coppola
Tuesday 04 April 2017 10:56 BST
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Five women have received payments from either 21st Century Fox or from Mr O’Reilly in exchange for agreeing not to sue or talk about their allegations
Five women have received payments from either 21st Century Fox or from Mr O’Reilly in exchange for agreeing not to sue or talk about their allegations

Mercedes-Benz and Hyundai are pulling advertising from the top-rated Fox News show “The O’Reilly Factor” because of claims of sexual harassment levied against its host.

The allegations are disturbing and, given the importance of women in every aspect of our business, we don’t feel this is a good environment in which to advertise our products right now,” Mercedes, a unit of Daimler, said in a statement.

Hyundai said it’s “reallocating its advertisements” slated for the program because of the assertions, which the Korean carmaker also called “disturbing.”

The decision is likely to put only a small dent in the armour of Fox News, which has triumphed in the ratings over the past year even as a sexual-harassment scandal surfaced around its former president, Roger Ailes, leading to his departure in July.

Corporate parent 21st Century Fox’s shares are up 12 percent over the past year, thanks in part to the large audience for Fox News, its most profitable network, and Bill O’Reilly, its most popular host.

But more allegations are coming to light against O’Reilly, showing that Ailes’s departure may not put an end to the scandal for Fox.

The New York Times reported over the weekend that five women have received payments from either 21st Century Fox or from O’Reilly in exchange for agreeing not to sue or talk about their allegations that O’Reilly verbally abused them, subjected them to unwanted advances or made lewd comments.

Former Fox News pundit Wendy Walsh calls out Bill O'Reilly for sexual misconduct

“We seek to partner with companies and programs that share our values of inclusion and diversity,” Hyundai said in a text message. “We will continue to monitor and evaluate the situation as we plan future advertising decisions.”

Fox has stood by Mr O’Reilly, who has said he is a target for such allegations because of his prominence. Rupert Murdoch, the 86-year-old billionaire who is co-chairman of the parent company, stepped in as chairman and acting CEO of Fox News Channel after Ailes’s ouster.

“21st Century Fox takes matters of workplace behavior very seriously,” a company spokesman said in a statement last weekend. “Notwithstanding the fact that no current or former Fox News employee ever took advantage of the 21st Century Fox hotline to raise a concern about Bill O’Reilly, even anonymously, we have looked into these matters over the last few months and discussed them with Mr. O’Reilly.”

Fox didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment about Mercedes pulling its advertising. A representative for Mitsubishi Motors didn’t immediately comment. Jaguar Land Rover said it wasn’t currently planning to pull ads from Fox. The British luxury-car maker recently decided to stop advertising on Google’s YouTube over concerns of placement of ads next to hateful videos.

CNN reported on Mercedes’s decision earlier.

Bloomberg

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