Fox News star Sean Hannity—a vocal supporter of Donald Trump on his radio show and his 10 p.m. program on the top-rated, right-leaning cable network—is in hot water Tuesday after his bosses were alerted to his participation in a Trump campaign video.
Hannity, who regularly features Trump on his shows in softball interviews and town halls, and recently sent a private jet for Newt Gingrich to confer with the Republican presidential nominee, appears along with Ted Nugent, Donald Trump Jr., Milwaukee County Sheriff David A. Clarke, Jr., and other Trumpkins to extol the candidate’s devotion to gun rights among other virtues.
“One of the reasons I’m supporting Donald Trump this year,” a jeans- and sport-shirt wearing Hannity tells the camera around minute six of the video, “is No. 1, he’s gonna put originalists on the Supreme Court who believe in fidelity to the Constitution, separation of powers, co-equal branches of government. He’s a guy who vet refugees to keep Americans safe…”
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And so on and so forth.
Apparently, Hannity didn’t see fit to obtain permission for starring in the political ad—an act that would be considered a serious breach of ethics at the overwhelming majority of news outlets—and the sort of behavior that is definitely not condoned at a post-Roger Ailes Fox News.
“We were not aware of Sean Hannity participating in a promotional video,” said a Fox News spokesperson, after The Daily Beast informed the network of Hannity’s appearance, “and he will not be doing anything along these lines for the remainder of the election season.”
It was not clear if Fox News co-presidents Bill Shine and/or Jack Abernethy gave Hannity a talking-to or whether he will face any disciplinary action.
