In addition to Henrys alleged violent sexual misconduct, the lawsuit also claims sexual harassment by Tucker Carlson, Sean Hannity, Howard Kurtz, and Gianno Caldwell. "Wetake all claims of harassment, misconduct and retaliation seriously, promptly investigating them and taking immediate action as needed in this case, the appropriate action based on our investigation is to defend vigorously against these baseless allegations. Nevertheless, Fox News would have the public believe that it is a different place from the Fox News that was run by former disgraced Chairman and CEO Roger Ailes. Cox, a lawyer in Evansville, also suffered severe head injuries and amnesia, in a 1979 motorcycle accident. ", According to the complaint, "Mr. Carlson was probing to see whether Ms. Areu was interested in a sexual relationship." The lawsuit says Areu, who was also a frequent guest on Kurtz's "Media Buzz" show, believes Kurtz tried to get her to join him in a hotel room in January 2019, at a time when she reached out to him seeking a full-time job at Fox. Fox News grappled with a series of embarrassing and often sordid lawsuits in the wake of the 2016 ouster of Ailes, its former chief executive who was alleged to have harassed several female staffers and other associates over the course of his career in TV. The plaintiffs are seeking a jury trial and damages. Fox News issued a statement on behalf of Hannity, Carlson and Kurtz, calling the claims in the suit "false, patently frivolous and utterly devoid of any merit.". Some of the names in leadership may have changed since Roger Ailes regime, but Fox News institutional apathy towards sexual misconduct has not., According to the complaint, Eckhart alleged that Henry, who is married, groomed, psychologically manipulated and coerced her into a sexual relationship in which he referred to her as his sex slave. Additionally, the lawsuit claimed, when she would not comply voluntarily, [Henry] sexually assaulted her on office property, and raped her at a hotel where Fox News frequently lodged its visiting employees., The relationship began in 2014, according to the lawsuit, after Henry, who is two decades older than Eckhart, messaged her on Twitter telling her that he thought she was beautiful. From there, the lawsuit claimed, Ms. I chose to file this complaint because no woman should have to suffer the conduct to which I was subjected, much less the egregious conduct suffered by Ms. Eckhart., In a statement, Fox News said: Based on the findings of a comprehensive independent investigation conducted by an outside law firm, including interviews with numerous eyewitnesses, we have determined that all of Cathy Areus claims against FOX News, including its management as well as its hosts Tucker Carlson, Sean Hannity & Howard Kurtz and its contributor Gianno Caldwell, are false, patently frivolous and utterly devoid of any merit. Left you bruised, batter, dazed, sated begging for more.. In acomplaintfiled Thursday in the U.S District Court in New York, Henry is seeking actual and punitive damages from NPR correspondentDavid Folkenflik and CNN correspondents Alisyn Camerota and Brian Stelterfor acting with"malice" by "intentionally or recklessly making false statements" about himwhile reporting on his Fox News departure. Later that day, he ordered her to perform oral sex on him in a guest office at Fox News headquarters in New York. The MNA stated that although they don't represent the employees at Henry Ford Hospital, they support the vaccine and oppose hospitals enforcing "one-sided policies. The lawsuit claims that the vaccines only provide "limited immunity" and could be potentially harmful in the long run. The lawsuit alleged that Areu was also subjected to inappropriate sexual harassment and retaliation by on-air Fox News personalities Sean Hannity, Tucker Carlson, and Howard Kurtz, as well as Fox News contributor Gianno Caldwell. 1998 - 2023 Nexstar Media Inc. | All Rights Reserved. These defamation claims come a day after Henry filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court in Newark, New Jersey, against Fox News and its CEO. This is not one of those cases. Read Next: Amanda Bynes to Join All That Cast Reunion in First Public Appearance Since Conservatorship Ended: Im Really Excited, AMC Networks Plans In-Person Upfront Session for Advertisers, Craig Ferguson, Sony Hope to Chart Late-Night Return With Syndicated Channel Surf, CNN Considering Content Contributions From Bill Maher, Warner Bros. Over 50 Michigan health care workers have filed a lawsuit with their employer, stating that the COVID-19 vaccine is an infringement upon their human rights. In the complaint, filed Monday in New York federal court, former Fox News producer Jennifer Eckhart alleged that Henrythe long-time Fox reporter and host of Americas Newsroom who was fired earlier this month for what the network called willful sexual misconductraped and assaulted her and performed sadistic acts on her without her consent that left her injured, bruised and battered with bloody wrists., What this lawsuit reveals is that todays Fox News is the same old Fox News, said attorney Douglas Wigdor in announcing the lawsuits filing. The statement also seeks to slut-shame Ms. Eckhart and suggests that she was asking to be violently raped. We call on Fox News to work with our clients to retain a truly independent investigator who is transparent. Disclosure: Ed Henry is married to NPR Chief Washington Editor Shirley Henry. There were not sexual harassment claims against Ed Henry at FOX News prior to Jennifer Eckharts claim on June 25, 2020, the spokesperson said. She also alleges that in 2017, he handcuffed her as part of "violent, painful rape" in a Manhattan hotel room. Editor's note: This report includes graphic descriptions of sexual assault accusations. This is not one of those cases, said Catherine Foti, an attorney for Henry. In 2019, she said Kurtz invited her to his hotel room to discuss her hope of getting a full-time job at Fox. ", NPR responded to the claim Friday. I thought, This is my material. My decision to speak out was not an easy one, but I refuse to let fear of retaliation, victim shaming and further attacks intimidate me into remaining silent. Based on the findings of a comprehensive independent investigation conducted by an outside law firm, including interviews with numerous eyewitnesses, we have determined that all of Cathy Areus claims against Fox News, including its management as well as its hosts Tucker Carlson, Sean Hannity & Howard Kurtz and its contributor Gianno Caldwell, are false, patently frivolous and utterly devoid of any merit, Fox News said in a statement. ", "MNA nurses believe that these questions are best decided democratically by health care workers themselves and need to be subject to collective bargaining," said the association. Henry was fired by Fox in July 2020, after Fox producer Jennifer Eckhart filed a civil lawsuit alleging Henry had raped her. Fox News White House correspondent Ed Henry prepares to do a stand-up in the Brady Briefing Room of [+] the White House in Washington, D.C. Jennifer Eckhart, a former Fox Business associate producer, alleges in the suit that Henry preyed upon, manipulated and groomed her and sexually assaulted her on company premises when she did not comply, further accusing him of raping her at a hotel the network used to lodge visiting employees. The explosive allegations are contained in court papers filed Wednesday by Henrys attorney Brian M. Block of Mandelbaum Salzberg in U.S. District Court in New Jersey, where Scott lives. In a later statement, a Fox News spokesperson denied the claim that it knew of the claims by Eckhart before June 25. The suit also alleges other Fox News personalities, including Sean Hannity, Tucker Carlson, Howard Kurtz and Gianno Caldwell, subjected Areu to inappropriate sexual harassment and retaliation. The lawsuit alleges that Henry raped Eckhart at a Manhattan hotel in 2017 while she was restrained in metal handcuffs. It alleges a litany of sexual misconduct, ranging from sexual harassment to forced oral sex, against Henry, as well as allegations of sexual harassment, sexual misconduct, discriminationand retaliatory conductagainstother network stars, including Sean Hannity, Tucker Carlson and Howard Kurtz. The evidence in this case will demonstrate that Ms. Eckhart initiated and completely encouraged a consensual relationship.". Foti said Henry had received graphic photos and suggestive messages from Eckhart. When Areu "sidestepped Mr. Carlson's advances and declined to spend the night at his hotel," the host "promptly retaliated against Ms. Areu, who was featured on his show only three times in 2019 and has not appeared once in 2020.". However, I simply could not stay silent given the tremendous harm that Mr. Henry and others at Fox News have caused for women affiliated with the company. Henry rejected the allegations, filing for dismissal of the suit by calling it "malicious and defamatory," and Fox denied anywrongdoing, saying it took "swift action" in lettingHenry go shortly after learning of the matter. In the same case, a former Fox employee said she was harassed and raped by news anchor Ed Henry, who was fired July 1 shortly after the network became aware of the accusations. The lawsuit also includes text messages from Henry to Eckhart, which the suit states were shared with Fox News. The other plaintiff, Cathy Areu, who was a regular guest on several Fox News programs, accuses Henry of sending her a slew of wildly inappropriate sexual images and messages, and accuses hosts Sean Hannity, Tucker Carlson, Howard Kurtz and contributor Gianno Caldwell of sexual harassment. In addition to Henrys alleged violent sexual misconduct, the lawsuit also claims sexual harassment by Tucker Carlson, Sean Hannity, Howard Kurtz, and Gianno Caldwell. We take all claims of harassment, misconduct and retaliation seriously, promptly investigating them and taking immediate action as needed in this case, the appropriate action based on our investigation is to defend vigorously against these baseless allegations. An Indiana couple filed a $100 million lawsuit claiming the movie Regarding Henry, in which Harrison Ford plays a man who suffers a severe brain injury, is based on their life story, which they tried to sell. regarding "willful sexual misconduct in the workplace years ago." The culture under Ailes was subsequently given the Hollywood treatment:"Bombshell," which earned Charlize Theron an Oscar nomination for playing Megyn Kelly this year,is based on the 2016 real-life sexual misconduct allegations against Ailes. The morning after Ms. Areu rejected Mr. Kurtzs advances, it continued, he refused to meet with her at the studio and curtly said to her, Im booked solid this morning which is why I hoped to connect last night. Mr. Kurtz was punishing Ms. Areu for refusing to join him at his hotel. In a statement to Forbes, Fox News claimed that, following an independent investigation, all the allegations levied at Hannity, Carlson, Kurtz and Caldwell are false, patently frivolous and utterly devoid of any merit and that the network would fight the lawsuit. Fox announced on July 1 that it fired Henry after conducting an internal investigation into Henrys willful sexual misconduct. But Mondays complaint alleged that the network and higher-ups including Fox News president Jay Wallace and Fox Business Network President Lauren Petterson, were already aware of several years-old complaints against the former on-air host, and he continued to receive promotions anyhow. One of the plaintiffs, Jennifer Eckhart, alleged she was assaulted by Henry, while the other, Cathy Areu, claimed in the filing that Henry sent her sexually graphic photos and messages. In this combination photo, Ed Henry, from left, speaks on "Fox & Friends" on Sept. 6, 2019, in New York, Tucker Carlson arrives for the 60th anniversary celebration of NBC's Meet the Press on Nov. 17, 2007, in Washington and Sean Hannity interviews Roseanne Barr during a taping of his show on July 26, 2018, in New York. One former Fox News staffer and one frequent on-air guest at the network filed suit in federal court Monday, alleging they had been harassed individually by Ed Henry, the Fox News anchor who was fired by the cable-news outlet earlier this month following a complaint about willful sexual misconduct in the workplace, and their disclosures threaten to revive an era that the Fox Corp.-owned media company had hoped to put behind it after the ouster of Roger Ailes. She had appeared on Carlsons show at least 17 times in 2018 but just three times in 2019 and not once in 2020, according to the lawsuit. FormerFox News anchorGretchen Carlson, one of thewomen who came forward with allegations against Ailes, got a reported $20 million settlement in 2016 after she sued the network, claiming Ailes demoted then fired her when she rejected his sexual advances. Heres what that might look like. The evidence in this case will demonstrate that Ms. Eckhart initiated and completely encouraged a consensual relationship. 2023 Variety Media, LLC. Fox has battled allegations of sexual misconduct in the past, including against network chief Ailes, who died in 2017. The lawsuit additionally accused Fox News of willfully downplaying the severity of the allegations against Henry in order to protect the networks reputation. Henry's lawsuit against Fox News came a day after the New York City Commission on Human Rights fined Fox News $1 million in a settlement stemming from a Mr. Ed Henry, who was fired last Julyby Fox News Channelover a sexual misconduct allegation, filed multiple lawsuits this weekfor defamation,including one against NPR and CNNcorrespondents and anotheragainst Fox News and its CEO Suzanne Scott. Henryfiled a separate lawsuit the same day against several websites and Twitter handles who shared similar allegations against the former correspondent. On one occasion, he told her to remove her underwear and deliver it to him in an envelope. Caldwell then made clear that the price to meet Ms. Coulter would be a date with Mr. Caldwell. The lawsuit alleges that Henry, approximately twice Eckharts age, had preyed upon, manipulated and groomed Eckhart since she was 24. Henry released a statement to USA TODAY on Monday through his lawyer, Catherine Foti. She said that he had asked Eckhart to be his sex slave and little whore and punished her when she did not comply with his demands. All Rights Reserved. She said she was a guest on Carlsons show in December 2018 and that after it was over, he told her he was staying in a hotel room in New York that night without his wife and children. On Wednesday, Henry Ford Hospital employees filed a lawsuit against Henry Ford Hospital in U.S. District Court. Based on investigative findings, Ed has been terminated, the executives said. But it was the accusations made by Eckhart, a former employee, that led to the anchors dismissal. On ExpressNews.com: Thomas J. Henry, law firm among defendants in lawsuit filed by alleged sexual assault victim She accused Henry, Thomas J. Henry Law News headquarters in New York Mr. caldwell raped her on Fox News willfully... Employees filed a civil lawsuit alleging Henry had received graphic photos and messages! 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