Former Fox News Reader Melissa Francis Gets $15 Million Payout After Alleging Gender Pay Discrimination

She had first floated the allegation of gender pay discrimination, conveniently enough, during the period when Fox showed no interest in renewing her contract, back in October 2020.

Francis has not been on air at Fox News for more than two weeks -- October 7 being her last appearance -- and the Los Angeles Times reported Thursday that she "is probably at the end of her six-year run at the network, according to people familiar with the matter."

The Los Angeles Times further reported that Francis "had filed a gender-based pay discrimination claim against the company that has been in arbitration," citing "one person familiar with the proceedings," with Francis allegedly complaining she was "underpaid compared with her male colleagues."

Despite the Los Angeles Times reporting that an unnamed person "close to Francis" said the Fox News co-host had been fired, Fox News denied the claim.

I suspect that she knew Fox didn't want to renew her contract, which is why she attempted to clean herself up to make her presentable for CNN or MSNBC -- by insisting that it was somehow wrong of Newt Gingrich to point out that George Soros was funding a lot of very hard-left, pro-criminal district attorney across the US. The media and the left (but I repeat myself) insist on claiming that this is a "conspiracy theory," as the Washington Post does here--but they never explain how it's a conspiracy theory.

We know his organizations are funding leftwing "decarceral" district attorneys, as well as the push to decarcerate prisoners generally.

But then, the left generally just claims anything that hurts their propaganda is a "conspiracy theory."

By the way, if you're wondering, "Gee, maybe George Soros is also pumping money into cash-strapped leftwing media companies, which explains their eagerness in defending Sugar Daddy Soros from the right's ' ' ' conspiracy theories, ' ' ' " congratulations, your hunch is correct. He's donating $48 million to media organizations, including $1 million just to Media Matters.

So that might account to why the entire leftwing media propaganda machine is devoted to claiming that any accurate news report that Soros bankrolled Kim Foxx, George Gascon, Larry Krasner, Chelsea Boudin, Buta Bibaraj, Alvin Bragg, etc. is a "conspiracy theory."

And Melissa Francis knew her time at Fox was about to end, and so she knew she had to ingratiate herself to Sugar Daddy Soros.

She alleged that women at Fox get less than men at Fox, which seems like an apples and orange comparison because no women at Fox come close to being major profit centers for the network apart from Laura Ingraham.

But Fox is an organization of woke liberal weaklings so they paid her $15 million anyway.

Of course, they might have something to do with her enlisting the very leftwing and very political New York State government to help fight her case for her.

Francis previously filed a complaint with the New York State Department of Labor alleging retaliation by Fox News after she highlighted a gender pay gap at the network.

In a statement, a network spokesperson told Mediaite, "Fox News has always been committed to the equitable treatment of all employees which we have demonstrated consistently over our 26-year history, and we are extremely proud of our business. We parted ways with Melissa Francis over a year and a half ago and her allegations were entirely without merit. We have also fully cooperated with the New York State Department of Labor's investigation and look forward to the completion of this matter."

During a contract negotiation in 2019, Francis alleges that Dianne Brandi -- a former executive vice president for legal and business affairs at the network -- acknowledged a pay disparity between men and women at Fox News. Francis claims that Brandi -- one of an increasing number of female executives at the network in the post-Roger Ailes era, led by CEO Suzanne Scott -- flat-out told the host she had no recourse, and was going to have to accept a smaller salary than a man would be given in a similar negotiation.

"That's how the world works," Brandi said, according to Francis. "Women make less. It's just a fact."

In a statement to Mediaite, the network vehemently denied Brandi ever said that.

"Melissa Francis's version of that conversation is untrue and patently absurd -- furthermore, it is illogical that anyone with Dianne Brandi's level of experience in negotiating talent contracts for a living would make such a ludicrous statement," the Fox News spokesperson said.

It sounds ludicrous that she'd say that -- but then, Fox is staffed by woke liberals, so who knows?

And I guess it pays to get in good with Sugar Daddy Soros.

posted by Ace at 05:57 PM

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