A letter signed by several high-ranking women in media, including former on-air personalities Megyn Kelly, Greta Van Susteren, and Gretchen Carlson, implored NBC parent company Comcast to launch an investigation into NBC News and their handling of sexual assault accusations.
NBC announced on Thursday that they did not intend to further investigate claims of sexual abuse against high-profile members of their staff, including former NBC host Matt Lauer, citing that investigative work already conducted was substantial. New interest and outrage over Lauer’s accusations of sexual abuse were stirred when journalist Ronan Farrow released the bombshell book, Catch and Kill earlier this month.
In her first on-air interview since her Today departure in 2018, Megyn Kelly told Tucker Carlson on Wednesday that she felt that NBC should release any and all people associated with Matt Lauer from nondisclosure agreements to check for evidence of inflated financial compensation. Kelly, who worked for years as a Fox News anchor, left the network after decrying network head Roger Ailes over sexual harassment allegations made against him by Gretchen Carlson. Carlson was ousted from Fox News in 2016 and subsequently sued Ailes for harassment alleging she lost her popular TV show because she refused his advances. Several other women came forward to complain about Ailes’ inappropriate behavior, which resulted in his resignation from the network. He died a short time later.
While still hosting The Kelly File on Fox News, Kelly was asked whether she believed Ailes deserved to be vindicated. “Absolutely not,” she said. “I have no doubts now about who he is or what he did. I don’t think he’d have spent a lifetime doing it and suddenly turn over a new leaf.” She left the network a few months later for NBC.
In an interview one year later, Kelly shared that she, too, had been sexually harassed by Ailes during her time at Fox News. She described a relationship that deteriorated over years and culminated with a shocking instance in which Ailes locked her in an office and attempted to engage in sexual activity. After her third rebuttal, Ailes reportedly asked her when her Fox contract expired. “It was explicit quid pro quo sexual harassment, which was basically: You sleep with me, and I’ll give you a promotion,” she said of the encounter. Kelly says she did report the incident but was told simply to avoid Ailes in the future, advice she said she regretted taking.
Now separated from Fox and NBC, Kelly spoke bluntly of her former employer. “Here is what they are saying,” Kelly said of NBC to Tucker Carlson. “No settlements of any kind. No settlements. That’s a legal sleight of hand. You can get paid out as a sexual harassment victim in something other than a settlement. You can get what’s called enhanced severance. That’s the situation where the receptionist is suddenly getting a seven-figure goodbye. She was, like, an amazing typist.”
“They haven’t gotten specific about what monies were paid out to whom,” Kelly also said. “Show us the money. The number one thing that needs to happen now is they need to release any and all Matt Lauer accusers from their confidentiality agreements.”
A statement from NBCUniversal the next day made clear the network’s intentions not to move forward with any more investigation as Kelly had suggested. “There is no additional investigation being conducted,” spokeswoman Hilary Smith said. “We are very confident in the report that was conducted. We fired Matt Lauer within 24 hours of learning what he did, and promptly launched a corporate investigation. Based on our investigative findings, we have swiftly taken appropriate actions to address the situation and improve workplace culture. It is also worth noting that this was a corporate investigation that was conducted by an almost entirely female team, none of whom are part of the News division.”
Kelly, Van Susteren, and Gretchen Carlson were joined by three other powerful, female network voices to demand that Comcast launch an investigation into the embroiled NBC. “As the parent company of NBC Universal, we appeal to you to overturn the network’s refusal on Thursday to conduct an independent investigation of sexual misconduct and coverups at NBC News,” the letter stated. “This week, the fearless reporting by Ronan Farrow and Rich McHugh exposed what many at NBC News have known for years: certain network executives have enabled a corporate culture of widespread sexual harassment and abuse, and are still trying to cover it up today.”
The six women, which also included Eleanor McManus, Linda Vester, and Addie Zinone, who also reported instances of sexual misconduct by Lauer, demanded that Comcast override the decision by NBCUniversal and proceed with nullifying nondisclosure agreements, allowing all accusers to speak freely of any concealed misconduct.
“Comcast must prove to its shareholders that it will pursue the truth on behalf of NBC staffers,” the Thursday letter said in conclusion. “If necessary, it should remove executives who have abused or silenced women.”
