Bill O’Reilly Blames Exit on ‘Unfounded Claims’

Bill O'Reilly released a statement Wednesday afternoon lamenting his firing from Fox News over a bevy of sexual-harassment allegations, old and new, that have dogged him and the network and led to a major advertising boycott. “Over the past 20 years at Fox News, I have been extremely proud to launch and lead one of the most successful news programs in history, which has consistently informed and entertained millions of Americans and significantly contributed to building Fox into the dominant news network in television,” he wrote. “It is tremendously disheartening that we part ways due to completely unfounded claims. But that is the unfortunate reality many of us in the public eye must live with today. I will always look back on my time at Fox with great pride in the unprecedented success we achieved and with my deepest gratitude to all my dedicated viewers. I wish only the best for Fox News Channel.”