Former Fox News anchor Gretchen Carlson on Thursday called for the network to release her from a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) she signed in 2016 after suing for alleged sexual harassment.
Carlson, along with other former Fox News employees, previously accused former CEO Roger Ailes of sexual harassment. Her latest call to be released from the NDA came Thursday in an op-ed published in The New York Times.
“Today I call on Fox News to release me, and all employees forced to sign NDAs as a condition of harassment settlements, from these agreements immediately,” Carlson wrote in the op-ed. “None of us expected or wanted a workplace dispute — we were simply the ones who had the ability and the courage to speak up, and for that, we lost our jobs.”
“We have a right to say what is factually correct or incorrect about what happened. We have a right to our voices and our truths. I urge executives at Fox to do what’s right and take this step today. For the sake of all women, in every workplace. That would be the biggest bombshell of all.”
Carlson’s op-ed came one day before “Bombshell,” a movie based on the efforts to expose Ailes, hit theaters. She added that “receiving a public apology from” the network appeared to be one of the big wins at the time. Since “a profound cultural shift” has caused more women to come forward with workplace allegations, Carlson noted that her view has changed.
Honoree Ronan Farrow accepts the Equity in Entertainment Award from TV personality Gretchen Carlson onstage during The Hollywood Reporter’s Power 100 Women in Entertainment at Milk Studios. (Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images for The Hollywood Reporter)
“I want my voice back. I want it back for me, and for all those silenced by forced arbitration and NDAs,” Carlson added, including networks and states who have made “positive movement in this direction.”
NBC announced in October that it would release any former employee from from their NDAs after journalist Ronan Farrow’s book accused the outlet of major coverups. The decision came after accusations that the network killed multiple sexual assault allegation stories and tried to cover up allegations against former host Matt Lauer.
Carlson began asking to be released from her NDA in October along with other former Fox News employees, according to Deadline. (RELATED: Matt Lauer Denies Allegation He Raped Former NBC Staffer)
Fox News did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the Daily Caller News Foundation.
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