William James O'Reilly Jr. (born September 10, 1949) is an American conservative commentator, journalist, author, and television host. O'Reilly's broadcasting career began during the late 1970s and 1980s, when reported for local television stations in the United States and later for CBS News and ABC News. He anchored the tabloid television program Inside Edition from 1989 to 1995. O'Reilly joined the Fox News Channel in 1996 and hosted The O'Reilly Factor until 2017. The O'Reilly Factor had been the highest-rated cable news show for 16 years, and he was described by media analyst Howard Kurtz as "the biggest star in the 20-year history at Fox News" at the time of his ousting. He is the author of numerous books and hosted The Radio Factor (2002–2009).In early 2017, The New York Times reported that he and Fox News had paid five women approximately $13 million to settle various sexual misconduct lawsuits, which led to the network terminating O'Reilly's employment. An additional New York Times report that O'Reilly paid legal analyst Lis Wiehl $32 million for allegedly initiating a "non-consensual sexual relationship" with her led to him being dropped by the United Talent Agency and literary agency WME. He subsequently began hosting …
Bill O'Reilly
Author details
- Born:
- Sept. 10, 1949
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William James O'Reilly Jr. (born September 10, 1949) is an American conservative commentator, journalist, author, and television host. O'Reilly's broadcasting career began during the late 1970s and 1980s, when reported for local television stations in the United States and later for CBS News and ABC News. He anchored the tabloid television program Inside Edition from 1989 to 1995. O'Reilly joined the Fox News Channel in 1996 and hosted The O'Reilly Factor until 2017. The O'Reilly Factor had been the highest-rated cable news show for 16 years, and he was described by media analyst Howard Kurtz as "the biggest star in the 20-year history at Fox News" at the time of his ousting. He is the author of numerous books and hosted The Radio Factor (2002–2009).In early 2017, The New York Times reported that he and Fox News had paid five women approximately $13 million to settle various sexual misconduct lawsuits, which led to the network terminating O'Reilly's employment. An additional New York Times report that O'Reilly paid legal analyst Lis Wiehl $32 million for allegedly initiating a "non-consensual sexual relationship" with her led to him being dropped by the United Talent Agency and literary agency WME. He subsequently began hosting a podcast, No Spin News.
