Let’s cut to the chase. Why would Bill O’Reilly, whose career at Fox News came to a screeching halt over allegations of sexual harassment, pay $32 million to his one-time lawyer?
Lis Wiehl resolved her “issues” with Trump, by her own affidavit, and agreed “I would no longer make the allegations contained in the draft complaint.” That’s lawyer-speak for “no comment, and thanks for the cash.” What it explicitly doesn’t mean is that the allegations were false–or true.
But $32 million is a lot to pay to keep a reputation that has already been damaged by sexual harassment accusations from having another added to them.
In fact, it defies imagination for some O’Reilly critics like Gretchen Carlson. But the New York Times didn’t think it was important to include or mention Weihl’s affidavits, despite having them available. It also didn’t include or mention any of the “love letters” O’Reilly provided.
Normally the NYT at least mentions responses from the objects of their investigations, but this time, they reported it like Buzzfeed did with the Trump “dossier.”
O’Reilly will appear on Glenn Beck’s program on Monday to discuss the NYT report, which he called a “smear piece.” Perhaps we will find out how much value he has placed on his reputation, or why $32 million was enough to pay for Wiehl to sign those affidavits.
Reports
Bill O’Reilly responds to latest NY Times ‘smear piece’ about massive sexual misconduct settlement – TheBlaze
He also explained: The Times failed to print the affidavit showing the woman at the center of the Times’ story signed repudiating her claims against O’Reilly. The New York Times has copies of two letters written by 21st Century Fox lawyers attesting to that fact.” What did he say on social media? In addition to directing his followers to his response to the Times’ story, O’Reilly tweeted: What did the Times report?
See the legal document the NY Times refused to publish in latest ‘smear piece’ on Bill O’Reilly – TheBlaze
Though the Times reported the flashy dollar figure, they left out some important facts. Though it was never supposed to become public, O’Reilly agreed to pay former Fox News legal analyst Lis Wiehl $32 million to settle sexual harassment allegations she brought against him. However, as part of the settlement, Wiehl signed an affidavit rescinding her misconduct allegations against O’Reilly.
‘Outrageous:’ Gretchen Carlson and others react to new Bill O’Reilly revelation – Oct. 22, 2017
Carlson, a former Fox News anchor, was careful not to mention O’Reilly by name. She sued her former boss Roger Ailes last year, alleging harassment and retaliation, which triggered a chain of events that caused him to resign. Later, she signed a settlement agreement with Fox worth $20 million, and the agreement limited what she can say publicly about the network.
BillOReilly.com: Statement on Behalf of Bill O’Reilly Relating to the New York Times Smear Piece
In its latest diatribe against Bill O’Reilly, the Times printed leaked information provided by anonymous sources that is out of context, false, defamatory, and obviously designed to embarrass Bill O’Reilly and to keep him from competing in the marketplace.
Reactions
Nobody pays $32m for false allegations – nobody https://t.co/qB3njcHHuy
— Gretchen Carlson (@GretchenCarlson) October 21, 2017
Yet another smear article on me. https://t.co/rryWmyXe7C has the verifiable truth. Please check it out. https://t.co/rGdVIF3SDD
— Bill O'Reilly (@BillOReilly) October 21, 2017
The man, the legend @billoreilly joins us this hour to give his perspective on the news. Listen now https://t.co/2Ydz3F8P7Q
— Glenn Beck (@glennbeck) October 20, 2017
My investigative team has done a superb job in exposing the lies and smear. I will speak with you on Monday.
— Bill O'Reilly (@BillOReilly) October 21, 2017
As a lawyer, let me tell you, you don’t pay $32m to settle sexual harassment claims. You pay $32m to settle a much harsher assault.
— Bakari Sellers (@Bakari_Sellers) October 21, 2017
Final Thoughts
I have to agree, that paying that amount of money (and other, previous settlements) certainly adds a lot of smoke, leading one to believe there might just be a fire somewhere.
But O’Reilly has been around a very long time, and knows the value of reputation. He doesn’t appear to be another Harvey Weinstein or Bill Cosby. On the other hand, he really should explain himself. Nobody is going to believe Wiehl’s defense of him, or any woman to whom he’s paid millions. And that could be the worst use of $32 million imaginable for O’Reilly–no matter what he says, many women will never believe him simply because he did pay.
I mean, would you?
Will America-First News Outlets Make it to 2023?
Things are looking grim for conservative and populist news sites.
There’s something happening behind the scenes at several popular conservative news outlets. 2021 was bad, but 2022 is proving to be disastrous for news sites that aren’t “playing ball” with the corporate media narrative. It’s being said that advertisers are cracking down, forcing some of the biggest ad networks like Google and Yahoo to pull their inventory from conservative outlets. This has had two major effects. First, it has cooled most conservative outlets from discussing “taboo” topics like Pandemic Panic Theater, voter fraud, or The Great Reset. Second, it has isolated those ad networks that aren’t playing ball.
Certain topics are anathema for most ad networks. Speaking out against vaccines or vaccine mandates is a certain path to being demonetized. Highlighting voter fraud in the 2020 and future elections is another instant advertising death penalty. Throw in truthful stories about climate change hysteria, Critical Race Theory, and the border crisis and it’s easy to understand how difficult it is for America-First news outlets to spread the facts, share conservative opinions, and still pay the bills.
Without naming names, I have been told of several news outlets who have been forced to either consolidate with larger organizations or who have backed down on covering certain topics out of fear of being “canceled” by the ad networks. I get it. This is a business for many of us and it’s not very profitable. Those of us who do this for a living are often barely squeaking by, so loss of additional revenue can often mean being forced to make cuts. That means not being able to cover the topics properly. Its a Catch-22: Tell the truth and lose the money necessary to keep telling the truth, or avoid the truth and make enough money to survive. Those who have chosen survival simply aren’t able to spread the truth properly.
We will never avoid the truth. The Lord will provide if it is His will. Our job is simply to share the facts, spread the Gospel, and educate as many Americans as possible while exposing the forces of evil.
To those who have the means, we ask that you please donate. We have options available now, but there is no telling when those options will cancel us. We just launched a new GiveSendGo page. We also have our GivingFuel page. There have been many who have been canceled by PayPal, but for now it’s still an option. Your generosity is what keeps these sites running and allows us to get the truth to the masses. We’ve had great success in growing but we know we can do more with your assistance.
Thank you, and God Bless!
JD Rucker
