FOX’s Megyn Kelly Leaving Network For NBC News
NBC News confirmed the move of Megyn Kelly from FOX News Channel to NBC News early Tuesday afternoon. The "triple threat" deal will give Kelly a daytime talk/commentary show, a Sunday Evening political talk show and role during big event coverage.
Rupert Murdoch's family, who runs FOX News Channel since the ouster of disgraced former CEO Roger Ailes, reportedly offered her $20 million per year to stay at the network. The negotiations have been among the closest-watched in the industry for months since the scandal involving Roger Ailes came to light. Kelly is just the latest to walk away from the FNC payroll. Just this year, Andrea Tantaros and high-profile anchor Greta van Sustren have left the network.
Read the following release from NBC News:
JANUARY 3, 2017 — Megyn Kelly, one of America’s most prominent news anchors, will join NBC News, it was announced today by Andrew Lack, Chairman of the NBCUniversal News Group.
Kelly will become anchor of a new one hour daytime program that she will develop closely with NBC News colleagues. The show will air Monday through Friday at a time to be announced in the coming months.
As part of the multi-year agreement, Kelly will also anchor a new Sunday evening news magazine show and will become an important contributor to NBC’s breaking news coverage as well as the network’s political and special events coverage.
Details about both of Kelly’s news programs will be unveiled in the coming months.
“Megyn is an exceptional journalist and news anchor, who has had an extraordinary career” Lack said. “She’s demonstrated tremendous skill and poise, and we’re lucky to have her.”
Kelly joins NBC News at a time when all four broadcasts in the division – “TODAY,” “NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt,” “Meet the Press,” and “Dateline NBC” – are leading in the key 25-54 news demo and the coveted 18-49 demo in the 2016-17 season to date. All four shows also won those same two demos in the November sweep period, the first time that has happened since 2002.
Kelly has consistently delivered top ratings while maintaining a uniquely strong connection with her viewers and an important voice on social media. Since 2013, Kelly has anchored FOX News Channel’s (FNC) The Kelly File, which she helped to create. The Kelly File is consistently the number one news program in overall viewers on cable news and first among the critical 25-54 demo audience. It is also the number two show in all of cable news. She joined FNC in 2004 as a Washington-based correspondent.