Fox News’ Chris Wallace moderates the 2020 presidential debate. Wallace says he’s leaving the network after 18 years and “ready for a new adventure.”
Olivier Douliery / AP
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Olivier Douliery / AP
Fox News’ Chris Wallace moderates the 2020 presidential debate. Wallace says he’s leaving the network after 18 years and “ready for a new adventure.”
Olivier Douliery / AP
One of the most popular and respected journalists at Fox News has announced his departure, effective immediately.
At the end of Fox News Sunday, Chris Wallace says that this is his last episode. “Eighteen years ago, the bosses here at Fox promised me they would never interfere with a guest I booked or a question I asked, and they kept that promise.” Wallace speak. “I have been free to report to the best of my ability, to deliver the stories that I consider important, to hold the leaders of our country accountable.”
Wallace was the first Fox News host to moderate a presidential debate, which he did in 2016 and 2020. Wallace, who was already a respected figure in the press when he arrived, was the first Fox News host to moderate a presidential debate. Fox News in the early 2000s had a reputation for asking tough questions. of both Democrats and Republicans.
On Sunday, Wallace said his next adventure will allow him to “go beyond politics to all the things I care about.” He didn’t say exactly what that new role would be, but within hours, CNN announced that he would be hosting a weekly interview show on his new subscription streaming service, CNN. +.
“After decades of following TV and cable news, I’m excited to explore the world of streaming,” Wallace was quoted as saying in a statement. statement published by CNN. “I look forward to the new freedom and flexibility of streaming in interviewing protagonists across the news – and finding new ways to tell stories.”
In a statement, Fox News Media said it was “extremely proud of our journalism and the outstanding team of which Chris Wallace is a member.” The company says the show will continue with popular journalists taking turns acting as hosts until a permanent host is named.
On Fox News’ weekly show MediaBuzz, the network’s media critic Howard Kurtz called Wallace “the most tenacious interviewer in the television business, based on thorough preparation and evidently longstanding tenacity.” Wallace’s departure is “a huge loss for Fox News, no doubt about it,” Kurtz said.
The 74-year-old presenter’s departure follows a series of conflicts over the direction of the network. Wallace occasionally rebuked his colleagues on the air for their flattery coverage of then-President Donald Trump. Along with political expert Bret Baier, he warned cyber executives about Tucker Carlson’s coverage of the January 6 siege of the United States Capitol, based on conspiracy theories and utterances. complete lie.
Wallace is just the latest high-profile figure to leave Fox News. In November, longtime conservative commentators Stephen Hayes and Jonah Goldberg resignation to protest what they called a pattern of incitement and fabricated statements by the servers of the pro-Trump network. Both men cite Carlson’s January 6 special as their breaking point.
Fox News is said to have pushed to keep Wallace, whose contract has expired. Multiple sources inside Fox News told NPR that his departure was a shock to journalists at the DC office, where Wallace was once based.
NPR Media reporter David Folkenflik contributed to this report.
