Megyn Kelly is leaving Fox News to take on a broad role at NBC News.
The Fox News star will host a daytime news show and anchor a Sunday night show, as well as regularly take part in breaking news and special event coverage at the network, the network announced in a statement Tuesday. The amount she was offered to move to NBC has not been disclosed.
Kelly was reportedly offered more than $20 million by Fox to stay on when her current contract expires, an offer other networks vying for her indicated they could not match. But she has hinted in recent interviews and in her new book, “Settle for More,” that she wouldn’t decide based on the highest bid; the broad role offered at NBC appears to have sweetened the deal.
One person briefed on Kelly’s discussions with NBC told The New York Times the network chairman, Andrew Lack, won her over by starting negotiations with an open-ended question about what she was seeking rather than immediately making some kind of offer. The resulting offer was tailored accordingly, offering for example, a daytime slot that would allow her to have dinner with her husband and see her kids off to school.
“Megyn is an exceptional journalist and news anchor, who has had an extraordinary career,” Lack said in the statement. “She’s demonstrated tremendous skill and poise, and we’re lucky to have her.”
Kelly quickly rose to prominence at Fox News after joining the network in 2012, eventually hosting her own show, “The Kelly File.” Her departure from Fox News follows that of former hosts Gretchen Carlson, who will co-host NBC’s “Today Show,” and Greta Van Susteren, who is reportedly heading to a nightly slot at MSNBC.
Carlson left the network after filing a sexual harassment lawsuit against Roger Ailes in July, and Van Susteren followed with an abrupt resignation in September, saying she hadn’t felt at “home” in years at the network. Kelly was one of about 20 women at Fox who reported inappropriate behavior from Ailes in a follow-up investigation commissioned by 21st Century Fox of the lawsuit.
“We thank Megyn Kelly for her 12 years of contributions to FOX News,” Rupert Murdoch, executive chairman of 21st Century Fox said in a statement Tuesday. “We hope she enjoys tremendous success in her career and wish her and her family all the best.”
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