

His quest for power consumed him."īy mid-2016 Ailes still ruled supreme as he prepared to celebrate Fox News' 20th anniversary.īut in little more than two weeks, both his legacy and job unraveled following allegations by a former anchor that he had forced her out of Fox News after she spurned his sexual advances. "It's a very complicated story," said Gabriel Sherman, author of the Ailes biography, "The Loudest Voice in the Room." ''He is in some ways a genius and in some ways tragic. "He has dramatically and forever changed the political and the media landscape singlehandedly for the better," Hannity tweeted on Thursday.įox News and 21st Century Fox executive chairman Rupert Murdoch called Ailes "a brilliant broadcaster (who) played a huge role in shaping America's media over the last thirty years" in a statement. Ailes branded the network "Fair and Balanced" and declared he had left the political world behind, but conservative viewers found a home and lifted prime-time commentators Bill O'Reilly and Sean Hannity to the top of the news ratings. That October, Ailes flipped the switch on Fox News Channel, which within a few years became the audience leader in cable news. Former Fox executive Roger Ailes died May 18 after falling at his home.
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Then he changed the face of 24-hour news when, in 1996, he accepted a challenge from media titan Rupert Murdoch to build a news network from scratch to compete with CNN and other TV outlets they deemed left-leaning. Bush and a one-time adviser to President Donald Trump, Ailes displayed a mastery of modern messaging early in his career. He was taken to a hospital by attending paramedics, the Palm Beach (Florida) Police Department said.Ī former GOP operative to candidates including Richard Nixon, Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Ailes fell in his bathroom, hit his head and was bleeding profusely. He was 77.Īiles died after a fall at his Palm Beach home on May 10 caused bleeding on the brain, the Palm Beach County Medical Examiner's Office said. According to her website, she's now involved with non-profit organizations that primarily focus on social welfare and workforce development.NEW YORK (AP) - Roger Ailes, the communications maestro who transformed television news and America's political conversation by creating and ruling Fox News Channel for two decades before being ousted last year for alleged sexual harassment, died Thursday, according to his wife, Elizabeth Ailes. Sometimes Ailes will tweet photos of Roger or their son from an unverified account, or post on her blog. She keeps to herself at her home in Palm Beach, Florida with her son Zachary. And so even as we mourn his death, we celebrate his life." She keeps to herself these days.Įlizabeth has mainly stayed hidden from any kind of spotlight since 2016. During a career that stretched over more than five decades, his work in entertainment, in politics, and in news affected the lives of many millions. He was also a patriot, profoundly grateful to live in a country that gave him so much opportunity to work hard, to rise, and to give back. Roger was a loving husband to me, to his son Zachary and a loyal friend to many. To ensure Fox News would not be the one to break the news of his death, Elizabeth emailed Matt Drudge of The Drudge Report writing, "I am profoundly sad and heartbroken to report that my husband, Roger Ailes, passed away this morning. (Image credit: Drew Angerer) She made sure Fox News didn't report on Ailes' death first. He died of hemophilia, which is said to have been triggered by when he fell and hit his head in his Florida home days prior. The couple did, however, stay married until Roger's death in May 2018.

Sources say that she was "taking all of the revelations especially hard," as rumors swarmed of a possible divorce considering she was living in New York and he was residing in Florida. It appears that Elizabeth did not know anything about her husband's behavior throughout the years. "This is not about money," she reportedly said. (Image credit: Tim Boxer) She stood by him during the sexual harassment accusations.ĭuring the lawsuit that sparked Roger's $40 million resignation from Fox News, Elizabeth stood by her husband.Īccording to New York Magazine , after Fox News anchor Megyn Kelly declined to stand by Roger during the lawsuit, Elizabeth suggested to the Fox News PR team to "release racy photos of Kelly published years ago in GQ Magazine as a way of discrediting her." It didn't end up happening since her request was turned down.
