Megyn Kelly, one of the faces of Fox News, decided to depart from the network in order to be part of NBC. She will be taking on three roles, which are hosting a daily daytime show, anchoring a Sunday night news show, and being part of the special coverage of NBC when it comes to politics and other big events in the country.
The Hill reported that the announcement was made by NBC News on Tuesday. Kelly's shows on Fox included "The Kelly File." "The Kelly File" is the second most-watched show on cable news. Kelly has been part of Fox for 12 years. Her contract with Fox will be expiring over the summer and her annual salary reached $20 million.
The New York Times reported that it is unclear if Kelly will still be part of Fox during the January 20 inauguration of president-elect Donald J. Trump or if she will already be with NBC during that time. Many critics believe that Kelly departing from Fox News means that they no longer have a female host in prime time.
The move of Kelly also comes after she has been involved in having confrontations and comments against Trump. She was also one of the lead women who ousted the co-founder of Fox and former chairman, Roger Ailes. Women have described their experiences with Ailes regarding being harassed or intimidated. She was also one of the victims of Ailes regarding unwanted sexual advances.
Rupert Murdoch, an executive chairman of 21st Century Fox, said in a statement that they thank Kelly for her 12 years of contribution to Fox News and added that they hope she enjoys success in her career regarding her decision to move. Sources said that Kelly has been trying to look for a job that would enable her to have more time with her family so they knew that she was a flight risk.
During that time, sources claimed that Kelly has been talking to other networks such as ABC News, CNN, and NBC News. NBC was the most talked about the network that Kelly might transfer to. It is unclear what the offer to Kelly was and how much is her annual salary but other networks, such as NBC News, said that they could not match Fox's $20M per year salary.
NBC News president Andy Lack also released a statement saying that Kelly is an exceptional journalist and news anchor and has demonstrated tremendous skill and poise. Kelly also released a statement on Facebook saying that she will greatly miss Fox but she is delighted to join NBC News and take on a new challenge.
