More women have reportedly said they, too, were sexually harassed by Fox boss Roger Ailes. Their allegations come after former Fox host Gretchen Carlson filed a lawsuit last week claiming Ailes sexually harassed her.
Six women told New York Magazine’s Gabriel Sherman of their allegations. Two allowed the use of their names; four spoke on anonymity. Carlson’s attorneys also told Politico that at least 10 women had come to them with their own claims that Ailes sexually harassed them. It’s not clear whether the women Sherman spoke to also told their stories to Carlson’s lawyers.
“It has become obvious that Ms. Carlson and her lawyer are desperately attempting to litigate this in the press because they have no legal case to argue. The latest allegations, all 30 to 50 years old, are false,” Ailes’ outside counsel said in a statement.
Ailes’ lawyers, Sherman reported, filed a motion to move the case to arbitration, preventing witnesses from testifying. Sherman wrote an unauthorized biographical book on Ailes, The Loudest Voice in the Room.
Kellie Boyle, a former Republican National Committee field adviser, told Sherman that Ailes told her in 1989, “You know if you want to play with the big boys, you have to lay with the big boys” and prevented her from signing a large contract when she denied his advances.
Marsha Callahan, a former model, told Sherman that Ailes made her put on a garter belt and model it for him and told her that she would have to sleep with him and a few of his friends to get the job. Ailes was producing “The Mike Douglas Show” at the time, Callahan reportedly said.
Ailes became the founding CEO of Fox in 1996.
Read Sherman’s full report.
This post has been updated.
