Fox News anchor apologizes for false report of 'likely' Clinton indictment

CLOSE The host had been referring to an FBI investigation into the Clinton Foundation. Newslook

Fox News anchor Bret Baier apologized on air Friday for his report that Hillary Clinton faces a "likely" indictment as the result of a federal investigation into the Clinton Foundation and for his report that Clinton's private email server had been hacked by five foreign intelligence agencies.

Both of Baier's mistaken reports were made Wednesday night in an appearance with Fox News Channel's Brit Hume. At the time, Baier said the information was based on "two separate sources with intimate knowledge of the FBI investigations into the Clinton emails and the Clinton Foundation."

Baier "clarified" his reporting Friday on the Fox News show Happening Now, hosted by Jon Scott.

"On the hacking of Clinton's private, unsecured server: While multiple sources believe and are operating under the working assumption that the server has been hacked, and some had specific quotes to that belief, there are to this day no digital fingerprints of such breaches," Baier said Friday on the Fox News show Happening Now, hosted by Jon Scott.

Baier admitted the report was based on a single, anonymous source.

He then said his statement that an indictment was "likely" in the investigation into the Clinton Foundation was a "mistake." Baier had already backtracked somewhat the previous night, calling the wording "inartful."

"Well, that just wasn't inartful, it was a mistake and for that I'm sorry," Baier said. "I should have said they will continue to build their case. Indictment obviously is a very loaded word, John, especially in this atmosphere and no one knows if there would or would not be an indictment no matter how strong investigators feel their evidence is."

Several news organizations reported Thursday that Baier's assertion was incorrect.

Baier stood by his report that there is an ongoing FBI investigation into the Clinton Foundation that began more than a year ago.

Republican nominee Donald Trump has used Baier's incorrect reporting in his campaign speeches. He repeated the claim that "FBI agents says their investigation is likely to yield an indictment" on Friday, despite Baier's apology.

The FBI has drawn heavy criticism for repeated leaks about the Clinton investigations, including from President Obama who said Thursday, "we don't operate on innuendo, we don't operate on incomplete information, we don't operate on leaks."

Read or Share this story: http://usat.ly/2f2pV9m </s> NEW YORK — Fox News Channel apologized Friday for an inaccurate report this week that Hillary Clinton would likely be indicted as a result of an investigation by the FBI into the Clinton Foundation.

Fox's Bret Baier, who initially reported on the case Wednesday, said Friday that "it was a mistake, and for that I'm sorry."

Clinton's critics have accused her family of giving donors special access to the State Department when Clinton was secretary of state.

The Associated Press reported this week that FBI agents seeking an investigation into the foundation talked to Justice Department lawyers last winter about allegations they wanted to pursue, but prosecutors were wary about the strength of the information they presented. It's unclear whether FBI agents are still looking into the foundation.

Baier began walking back his report the next day, saying that his phrasing had been inartful. "Well, that wasn't just inartful, it was a mistake," he said Friday.

"Indictment obviously is a very loaded word ... especially in this atmosphere, and no one knows if there would or would not be an indictment no matter how strong investigators feel their evidence is," he said. Baier hasn't identified the sources for his original report.

Baier also said in his original report that his sources believed with "a 99 accuracy" that Clinton's email server had been hacked by at least five foreign intelligence agencies.

He said Friday that he had one source for that information, and that while others believe that is probable, "there are still no digital fingerprints of a breach no matter what the working assumption is within the bureau."

The meeting in February about the Clinton Foundation came after the book "Clinton Cash" by Republican political consultant Peter Schweizer was published, alleging that foreign governments donating to the foundation received at the State Department while Clinton was secretary. The State Department hasn't found any ethics violations involving the foundation while Clinton was there. </s> The Fox News Channel has retracted a week-old story based on a groundless conspiracy theory involving the death of a staffer for the Democratic National Committee, conceding it did not meet the network's standards.

The retracted May 16 online story claimed to report as fact that the late Seth Rich, a 27-year-old Democratic National Committee staffer, was actually the person who leaked tens of thousands of emails from the DNC to WikiLeaks and that his murder was tied to that action. Rich was fatally shot last July in what police have called a botched robbery and there is no evidence known publicly to suggest he did share those emails. The Rich family had publicly pleaded with Fox News and others to stop trading in such speculation absent facts.

"The article was not initially subjected to the high degree of editorial scrutiny we require for all our reporting," the Tuesday statement read. "Upon appropriate review, the article was found not to meet those standards." The Fox News statement did not apologize or specify what went wrong or how it did so, and it did not bear the name of its author. But it promised to continue to investigate the story and provide updates.

Fox News' star host Sean Hannity, who had pushed the theory relentlessly, said on his radio show that he retracted nothing. He also tweeted the importance of finding out the truth. On television Tuesday night, Hannity said he would no longer talk about the story "out of respect for the family's wishes — for now."

Yet Hannity, a leading Donald Trump advocate and confidant, did not apologize or say the story was wrong. Instead, he pivoted to assailing the "destroy-Trump media [and] the Democrats."

The public disclosure of the content of those DNC emails threw Hillary Clinton's campaign into turmoil during the 2016 election and led to the resignation of the chairwoman of the DNC, though they did not contain any extraordinary revelations.

The embrace of the conspiracy theory around Rich's death by Hannity and others caused similar tumult at Fox News this month, revealing and deepening rifts between its journalists and the opinion side that propels its economic success, according to several people at the network.

The handling of the story also exposed the tentativeness of the network's leadership after the departure of prominent and longtime executives, including former chairman Roger Ailes and former co-president Bill Shine. Rupert Murdoch, whose family controls Fox's parent company, is acting as the network's CEO. (Ailes, who died May 18, had been accused of sexual harassment by many women and Shine had been accused of enabling or hiding his behavior. Both men denied those charges.)

A version of the Fox News' May 16 online story ran on the Fox local station in Washington, D.C., Fox 5, the night before. Journalists and executives within Fox watched with growing alarm as Hannity, the network's fixture at 10 p.m., repeatedly legitimized suspicion that Rich's death was linked to the DNC leaks.

The claim about Rich's death has also been embraced on the air by former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, a Fox News contributor. As far back as August, Fox host Eric Bolling compared the story to something out of the Showtime spy thriller Homeland and called Rich's killing "a hit."

The May 16 FoxNews.com report claiming proof of Rich's involvement in the DNC email leaks was used by Trump defenders to deflect growing concerns on Capitol Hill and among current and former intelligence officials about the nature of contacts during the campaign between Trump's circle and figures with ties to Vladimir Putin's regime in Russia.

Breitbart News and the Gateway Pundit were among the other sites that trafficked in the conspiracy theory — as did the Twitter account for the Russian embassy in London. Yet the story had a particular Fox imprint: The May 15 Fox 5 report cited as its source a private investigator who worked for the Rich family named Rod Wheeler, who has been a paid Fox News contributor. Wheeler later said he had relied on the statement of a Fox 5 producer who had prepared him for the segment.

As it happens, Wheeler had been hired not by the Riches but by a conservative Dallas investor named Ed Butowsky on their behalf. Butowksy has appeared periodically as a commentator on Fox News and Fox Business. He had his own personality page on Fox's website until shortly after I publicly pointed that fact out last week.

Hannity has told others at the network that Fox needs him more than ever since last month's departure of former star host Bill O'Reilly. (O'Reilly also left after facing sexual harassment charges he disputes.)

Hannity told viewers Tuesday night that he would stay at Fox News "as long as they seem to want me" but cited critics who he said were trying to silence him, such as the liberal advocacy group Media Matters. Hannity called such efforts "liberal fascism."

Yet many critics of the story could be found on the right — even among conservative voices in Murdoch's own vast media holdings.

On May 21, Seth Mandel, opinion page editor of the Murdoch-owned New York Post, tweeted: "Why are you doing this to them? Why are you tormenting a grieving family like this? Please, Sean. Please. Stop doing this. Please."

New York Post columnist John Podhoretz wrote in the magazine Commentary, which he edits, that the theory is "the unwitting catspaw of an authoritarian government in Moscow."

Podhoretz continued: "It should go without saying that defaming a dead man by asserting he was killed for doing something criminal is a great evil."

And National Review editor Jonah Goldberg, a Fox News contributor, has been a constant thorn to Hannity on Twitter over the Seth Rich story. Goldberg is author of a book whose title is apparently familiar to Hannity: Liberal Fascism.

Fox News founder Roger Ailes famously hated to retract any reports, arguing it showed weakness and simply gave more fodder to the network's critics.

In the post-Ailes era at Fox News, the news side won this round, even though the retraction was grudging, lacked specificity and did not include an apology. But that victory took a full week — on a story with major national stakes involving a young man's death. </s> The far right has been collectively fixated on one conspiracy theory for the past two weeks: that a Democratic National Committee staffer was murdered on the orders of Hillary Clinton (or something along those lines).

Now, even Fox News — which helped kickstart the recent revival of the conspiracy — is distancing itself from the story.

Fox News on Tuesday announced a retraction of the story it published on May 16 about the staffer. In that post, Fox News claimed that a "federal investigator" had seen evidence that Seth Rich had been a source for WikiLeaks. That fed conspiracy theorists who believed this caused Democrats/Hillary Clinton to have Rich murdered.

"On May 16, a story was posted on the Fox News website on the investigation into the 2016 murder of DNC Staffer Seth Rich. The article was not initially subjected to the high degree of editorial scrutiny we require for all our reporting. Upon appropriate review, the article was found not to meet those standards and has since been removed," reads a post on FoxNews.com announcing the retraction. "We will continue to investigate this story and will provide updates as warranted."

Since the story came out, the far right has been pushing the story online, while Sean Hannity, one of the few Fox News evening personalities still at Fox News, has also been championing the story.

Despite the retraction, Hannity still tweeted out about the theory right around the time that Fox News released its retraction.

Rich was shot to death in Washington, D.C. in July 2016. His murder, which remains unsolved, was seized on by online conspiracy theorists who linked the death to Rich's work with the DNC.

The conspiracy theory had cooled until recently when a local Fox broadcast affiliate posted a story quoting a private investigator (who is also a Fox News contributor) as saying he was aware of evidence that Rich had been a source for WikiLeaks — a key part of the previous conspiracy theory. Fox News then followed with their own story.

Those reports have since been debunked, but that has not stopped the far right as well as Fox News from pushing the theory — despite requests from Rich's family that their son's death not be used as political fodder. </s> FILE - In this Jan. 30, 1996 file photo, Roger Ailes, left, speaks at a news conference as Rupert Murdoch looks on after it was announced that Ailes will be chairman and CEO of Fox News. Former Fox News host Andrea Tantaros has charged in a lawsuit filed Monday, Aug. 22, 2016, she was sexually harassed by former network chief Roger Ailes and other top executives. (AP Photo/Richard Drew, File)

NEW YORK — Former Fox News Channel anchor Gretchen Carlson has settled her sexual harassment lawsuit against Roger Ailes, the case that led to the downfall of Fox's chief executive with stunning swiftness this summer.

In a statement Tuesday, Fox parent company 21st Century said that "we regret and apologize for the fact that Gretchen was not treated with the respect and dignity that she and all of our colleagues deserve."

Carlson was paid $20 million, according to someone familiar with the confidential settlement who spoke under condition of anonymity.

Carlson alleged that she was demoted and let go from Fox after she refused Ailes' sexual advances and complained about workplace harassment. Ailes denied the charges, but 21st Century launched an investigation and Ailes resigned after other women made allegations. </s> LOS ANGELES—Former Fox News anchor Gretchen Carlson has reached a detente of sorts with the network's parent over charges she was sexually harassed by Roger Ailes, the cable-news network's former leader and guiding light.

The media conglomerate, controlled by the Murdoch family, said it had reached a settlement with Carlson, who anchored such programs as "Fox & Friends" and "The Real Story" during her time at the outlet. A report in Vanity Fair suggested the amount could total as much as $20 million, and a person familiar with the matter said the report was accurate. A spokesman for Carlson's attorneys, declined to comment.

"21st Century Fox is pleased to announce that it has settled Gretchen Carlson's lawsuit. During her tenure at Fox News, Gretchen exhibited the highest standards of journalism and professionalism. She developed a loyal audience and was a daily source of information for many Americans. We are proud that she was part of the Fox News team," the company said in a statement. "We sincerely regret and apologize for the fact that Gretchen was not treated with the respect and dignity that she and all of our colleagues deserve."

The settlement would appear to close at least one of the many storylines related to the behavior of Ailes, who was the subject of a lawsuit Carlson filed in July alleging the executive had subjected her to sexual come-one and other inappropriate behavior. Her suit sparked an internal investigation at the news outlet, which is the most-watched cable-news network and which has a significant influence on the news cycle. Other women are said to have come forward at Fox News alleging sexual harassment by Ailes, and there is speculation the parent company will bring in a new executive to lead the network. Rupert Murdoch, executive chairman of 21st Century Fox, has stepped in to lead Fox News on an interim basis and Bill Shine and Jack Abernethy, two veteran Fox TV executives were recently named co-presidents and will lead Fox News and Fox Business.

"I am gratified that 21st Century Fox took decisive action after I filed my complaint," Carlson said in a statement. "I'm ready to move on to the next chapter of my life."

In taking legal action and speaking out about her treatment at the network, Carlson has put into place a massive shift at what is arguably the financial engine of 21st Century Fox. Fox News contributes approximately 20% of the company's annual cash flow. Ailes had a strong hand in transforming the network from a start-up in 1996 that had to push for carriage on Time Warner Cable into an influential organization that can be as controversial and polarizing as it is populist and broadly appealing.

In her lawsuit, filed in Superior Court of New Jersey, Carlson alleged she was removed from "Fox & Friends" in 2013 after she complained about behavior by co-host Steve Doocy, and then moved to an afternoon program as a way to diminish her presence at the network. Carlson alleged she was terminated on June 23 after her current contract elapsed. </s> 21st Century Fox has reached a $20 million settlement deal with Gretchen Carlson, the anchorwoman who sued Roger Ailes alleging harassment and retaliation in July.

The eight-figure deal is likely to have consequences across corporate America. Fox also apologized to Carlson in a highly unusual public statement on Tuesday morning.

"We sincerely regret and apologize for the fact that Gretchen was not treated with the respect that she and all our colleagues deserve," 21st Century Fox said.

Vanity Fair magazine was the first to report the settlement on Tuesday. A source close to Fox confirmed the $20 million total to CNNMoney.

Ailes will pay an unknown portion of the settlement.

Ailes, the powerful Fox News CEO and chairman, resigned in the wake of the harassment allegations, which he has continuously denied.

Now out of his Fox job, Ailes is informally advising GOP nominee Donald Trump ahead of the presidential debates this fall.

Lawyers for Ailes had no immediate comment on the Carlson settlement.

According to Vanity Fair, Fox has also reached settlements with two other women who alleged harassment by the executive.

After Carlson sued, 21st Century Fox -- which is run by Rupert Murdoch and his sons James and Lachlan -- brought in an outside law firm to investigate the allegations.

More than 20 women reportedly spoke with the lawyers about inappropriate behavior by Ailes.

Ex-host Andrea Tantaros filed suit against Ailes and Fox last month. It is unclear whether Fox is vulnerable to any other lawsuits at the present time.

Settling with Carlson, at least, is part of the Murdochs' effort to move past the scandal.

Related: Gabriel Sherman: Murdochs looked the other way at Roger Ailes' behavior

The settlement means that Carlson will not testify against Ailes or share any evidence of harassment. Several news outlets have reported that Carlson recorded some of her meetings with Ailes.

"I am gratified that 21st Century Fox took decisive action after I filed my complaint," Carlson said Tuesday. "I'm ready to move on to the next chapter of my life in which I will redouble my efforts to empower women in the workplace."

She also expressed thanks to the people who supported her when she filed the suit.

"I want to thank all the brave women who came forward to tell their own stories and the many people across the country who embraced and supported me in their #StandWithGretchen," she said. "All women deserve a dignified and respectful workplace in which talent, hard work and loyalty are recognized, revered and rewarded."

Separately, Fox News announced the departure of 7 p.m. host Greta Van Susteren on Tuesday morning. Van Susteren reportedly tried to renegotiate her contract after Ailes resigned, and opted to leave when the negotiations failed. </s> Fox News will pay $20million to settle Gretchen Carlson's lawsuit against disgraced former network president Roger Ailes, the network's parent company announced on Tuesday.

The network is eager to get the lawsuit behind them as the presidential race enters enters its final stretch, and it seeks to resign major anchors' contracts, including Megyn Kelly.

In addition to writing a multi-million-dollar check to former Fox & Friends co-host Carlson, the network also issued public apology.

'We sincerely regret and apologize for the fact that Gretchen was not treated with the respect that she and all our colleagues deserve,' the statement from 21st Century Fox, Fox News' parent company, reads.

Carlson issued a public statement through 21st Century Fox, saying she was 'gratified' with the 'decisive action' on Ailes.

'I’m ready to move on to the next chapter of my life in which I will redouble my efforts to empower women in the workplace,' she said.

In exchange, Carlson has agreed to drop the lawsuit against Ailes and will not bring up any new suits against the company or any of its employees.

Reuters confirmed Tuesday that Carlson had voluntarily dropped the lawsuit against her former boss in a new court filing.

21st Century Fox is pleased to announce that it has settled Gretchen Carlson’s lawsuit. During her tenure at Fox News, Gretchen exhibited the highest standards of journalism and professionalism. She developed a loyal audience and was a daily source of information for many Americans. We are proud that she was part of the Fox News team. We sincerely regret and apologize for the fact that Gretchen was not treated with the respect and dignity that she and all of our colleagues deserve.” “I am gratified that 21st Century Fox took decisive action after I filed my Complaint. I’m ready to move on to the next chapter of my life in which I will redouble my efforts to empower women in the workplace. I want to thank all the brave women who came forward to tell their own stories and the many people across the country who embraced and supported me in their #StandWithGretchen. All women deserve a dignified and respectful workplace in which talent, hard work and loyalty are recognized, revered and rewarded.”

In addition to the settlement, New York Magazine's Gabriel Sherman reports that longtime Fox News anchor Greta Van Sustern is leaving the network. Van Sustern was a noted supported for Ailes during the scandal. Her hour-long spot on the network will be filled by Brit Hume, Fox News senior political analyst.

Fox News is settling the lawsuit on behalf of Ailes, just two months after the longtime CEO and president of the network was forced to resign in the wake of the allegations. Ailes has reportedly agreed to pay part of the settlement, according to sources who spoke with New York Magazine.

Vanity Fair also reported that the company has reached settlement agreements with two other women in regards to Ailes.

After Carlson went public with her claims against Ailes in July, several other women spoke to outside lawyers hired by Fox News with similar stories of sexual harassment.

Carlson, co-anchored Fox & Friends for seven years before she left to anchor her own one-hour program for the network. That show, The Real Story with Gretchen Carlson, was cancelled this year. She tweeted on July 6 that she was no longer with the network, and that day she filed a sexual harassment lawsuit against Ailes.

In the lawsuit, Carlson claimed she was fired from her own program for refusing Ailes' sexual advances.

According to pictures posted to her Twitter account on Monday, she is currently on vacation in Croatia. </s> Former Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-N.Y.) on Friday pleaded guilty to sending obscene material to an underage girl.

“I have a sickness, but I do not have an excuse,” he said, according to The New York Daily News.

“I apologize to everyone I have hurt,” Weiner added in his admission to the court. “I apologize to the teenage girl, whom I mistreated so badly.”

The Daily News reported that Weiner cried as he read a four-paragraph statement at the Manhattan Federal Courthouse.

Prosecutors said they would ask for 21 months to 27 months in prison for Weiner once his plea is entered. He will also be required to register as a sex offender.

Court documents indicated the plea deal was finalized on May 10, according to the Daily News.

Weiner, 52, was facing a single charge of transmitting obscene material to a minor. The charge carried a potential 10-year prison term.

“I knew this was as morally wrong as it was unlawful,” said Weiner, whose sentencing is scheduled for Sept. 8.

“I engaged in obscene communications with this teenager, including sharing explicit images and encouraging her to engage in sexually explicit conduct, just as I had done and continued to do with adult women.”

Investigators say Weiner, then 51, began exchanging illicit text messages with a 15-year-old girl in North Carolina in January 2016. Weiner’s plea indicated the conducted occurred from that January and March.

The investigation into Weiner has been blamed in part for Hillary Clinton Hillary Rodham ClintonTrump renominates 2 highest military officers 'West Wing' press secretary thinks Spicer should 'just quit' Clinton 'burst out laughing' at footage of Trump debate prep MORE’s loss in the 2016 presidential election to President Trump. The FBI announced in October it was renewing its investigation into Clinton's handling of classified material after Clinton emails were found on Weiner's laptop in the course of a separate investigation.

Weiner is married to Huma Abedin, a longtime aide to Clinton.
Fox News apologizes to Hillary Clinton for reporting falsely of 'likely' Clinton indictment.