Fox News co-president Bill Shine has left the network just days after it was reported that the cable channel’s leadership wanted to see a woman take his place.
Fox News CEO Rupert Murdoch announced Shine’s resignation in a brief email sent to Fox staffers on Monday.
“Sadly, Bill Shine resigned today,” Murdoch wrote. “I know Bill was respected and liked by everybody at Fox News. We will all miss him.”
In a statement obtained by TheBlaze, Murdoch described Shine’s departure as “a significant day” for Fox. He added that Shine’s “contribution to our channel and our country will resonate for many years.”
The Fox executive announced that Suzanne Scott will be promoted to president of programming and Jay Wallace will become president of news. Jack Abernathy will remain co-president in charge of the business side of the network, handling finance, advertising, and distribution.
“Suzanne and Jay are recognized industry leaders,” Murdoch said. “They have both played a large part in assembling the deepest bench of talented broadcasters and journalists. They will lead Fox News to an even more successful future.”
While Shine has not been accused of sexual harassment, his name has arisen in several lawsuits alleging the he covered up incidences of harassment by former Fox Chairman and CEO Roger Ailes.
Former Fox host Andrea Tantaros alleged in a lawsuit that she complained to Shine about sexual harassment by Ailes. Rather than dealing with the issue, the suit claims, Shine simply advised Tantaros not to launch any allegations against the ousted CEO.
And most recently, Shine was a staunch defender of former anchor Bill O’Reilly, who parted ways with Fox last month after a series of sexual harassment accusations were leveled against him. At the start of his career at Fox News in 1996, Shine worked with O’Reilly and served as the producer of the now-defunct “Hannity & Colmes,” a program hosted by Sean Hannity and the late Alan Colmes.
When rumors first started swirling last week that Shine could be on his way out, Hannity took to Twitter to say Shine's departure would mark the “end of [Fox] as we know it.” He followed that comment with the hashtag “#Istandwithshine.”
At press time, Hannity had not commented on the news regarding Shine’s resignation.
