Despite several reports that he has been shown the exit, 21st Century Fox maintained that Fox News chief Roger Ailes is still working for the company and that an external review into claims that the long-time executive sexually harassed several women under his employ is ongoing.
"Roger is at work," Fox said in an e-mail statement late Tuesday."The review is ongoing. And the only agreement that is in place is his existing employment agreement. "
The last part of the statement was in reference to reports that Ailes is set to receive a $40 million severance package on his departure.
Ailes has been under fire ever since former Fox & Friends anchor Gretchen Carlson alleged that Ailes had sexually harassed her on several occasions, firing her recently after she again refused his advances. Since then several women, former and current Fox employees, have come forward to attorneys investigating the allegations, saying that Ailes too had sexually harassed them. Fox News anchor Megyn Kelly, who had been strangely silent as other on-air personalities defended Ailes (including Bill O'Reilly, Maria Bartiromo and Greta Van Susteren) reportedly told those same attorneys that Ailes had made sexual advances toward her 10 years ago.
According to a New York Magazine report by Ailes' unofficial biographer Gabriel Sherman, 21st Century Fox CEO James Murdoch had been pressing for Ailes' immediate ouster, while his brother, executive chairman Lachlan and his father executive chairman Rupert were in favor of waiting until after the Republican National Convention this week to pull the trigger.
