Fired TV host Bill O’Reilly to get $25m payout from Fox News

Bill O’Reilly, star cable news host will get a payout of up to 25 million dollars following his ouster from Fox News over sexual harassment allegations, a source familiar with the situation has said.

Fox News parent Twenty-First Century Fox Inc (FOXA.O) announced on Wednesday it had parted ways with the star cable news host, ending his more than 20-year career, following the allegations from a number of women.

O’Reilly’ severance, totaling the equivalent of one year of his salary, would mark the latest multi million-dollar payment by Fox News related to men accused of sexual harassment.

The New York Times reported on April 1 that Fox and O’Reilly had paid five women a total of 13 million dollars to settle harassment claims.

O’Reilly said in a statement at the time that he had settled only to spare his children from controversy.

A protestor from the National Organisation for Women of New York (NOW-NYC) holds a protest in front of Fox News Channel and the News Corporation Headquarters, following the firing of Bill O’Reilly, in New York City, U.S. April 20, 2017.

O’Reilly, who has been off the air on vacation since April 11, said in a written statement on Wednesday he, was proud of his “unprecedented success” at Fox.

“It is tremendously disheartening that we part ways due to completely unfounded claims. But that is the unfortunate reality many of us in the public eye must live with today,” O’Reilly said in the statement.

In July, the company paid former head of Fox News, Roger Ailes, a severance package of about 40 million dollars, following allegations of sexual harassment.

Ailes in his resignation letter did not indicate he did anything wrong.

O’Reilly’s show, “The O’Reilly Factor,” has been the most watched program on Fox News and was coming off the highest-rated first quarter in its history, averaging four million viewers.