Abby Grossberg, a former producer for 'Tucker Carlson Tonight', has reached a settlement with Fox News and anchor Tucker Carlson, amounting to $12 million, according to her attorney's announcement on Friday. Grossberg had filed lawsuits earlier this year, alleging harassment and being made a scapegoat for Fox's legal battle with Dominion Voting Systems.
In her legal claims, Grossberg asserted that she was fired after going public with her allegations, which included accusations against Carlson and the network for fostering a toxic work environment with misogynistic and anti-Semitic undertones. In response to the settlement, Grossberg released a statement expressing, "While I stand by my publicly filed claims and allegations, in light of today's settlement of $12 million, pursuant to which I have now withdrawn those claims, I am heartened that Fox News has taken me and my legal claims seriously. I am hopeful, based on our discussions with Fox News today, that this resolution represents a positive step by the Network regarding its treatment of women and minorities in the workplace."
Abby Grossberg's lawsuit exposes troubling work culture at Fox News
Amidst the legal battle, another former 'Tucker Carlson Tonight' producer, Justin Wells, spoke out against Grossberg, denying all the "claims and allegations against Tucker Carlson and his team." However, Wells acknowledged the settlement and expressed the hope that all parties involved could now move forward. Grossberg's lawsuit against Fox News detailed a culture of unprofessionalism, sexism, harassment, and antisemitism within the network. She claimed to have been denied promotions and opportunities because of her gender and shared instances of derogatory remarks made about women and Jewish individuals by Fox News executives and colleagues.
Before joining 'Tucker Carlson Tonight', Grossberg worked as a senior booking producer for Maria Bartiromo. She decided to join Carlson's show due to the promotion it offered, but she quickly realized the presence of the alleged culture of misconduct. The settlement with Grossberg comes after she filed another lawsuit against Fox News, which was filed before the network's $787.5 million Dominion Defamation settlement. In that lawsuit, she accused Fox News lawyers of attempting to blame her for the network's promotion of misinformation about the 2020 election and airing conspiracy theories about Dominion voting systems.
Tucker Carlson's ongoing feud with Fox News
As the legal battles unfolded, Carlson found himself in a dispute with Fox News, leading to his dismissal from the network. Tucker Carlson has since been broadcasting on Twitter from a barn in Maine, while Fox News demands he cease and desist. “We’re at the two-month mark since Carlson’s last show, which he didn’t know was his last show. It’s striking that there’s no resolution even close to being in sight,” said Brian Stelter, once host of CNN’s Reliable Sources, now writing a second book about Rupert Murdoch’s media giant, Network of Lies: The Epic Saga of Fox News, Donald Trump and the Battle for American Democracy.
'A drop in the bucket for Fox!'
Internet users expressed fury over the numerous cases where Fox News allegedly paid settlements to avoid going to trial. A user tweeted, "A drop in the bucket for Fox." Another added, "They want to keep her quiet during the Smartmatic lawsuit!" A third claimed, "Funny, Faux News won't take a case to trial." "Who else is getting fired now lol," read a tweet. Another user claimed, "So again instead of exposing LIES they cave to the money!!!!!!" "And still they spew lies everyday. I can’t wait to see what SmartMatic does to them, read a tweet.
