Bill O'Reilly is out at Fox, but the National Organization for Women says more heads should roll

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Bill O'Reilly has been let go amid allegations of sexual harassment, but that doesn't mean all is well at Fox News, says a prominent women's rights organization.

The network announced Wednesday that it would part ways with The O'Reilly Factor host, after the New York Times revealed that he and Fox paid five women a total of $13 million US  to settle harassment claims. 

The news comes after former Fox News chairman Roger Ailes was forced to resign in July after being accused of sexual misconduct by a number of women, including former anchor Gretchen Carlson.

Both O'Reilly and Ailes have maintained their innocence. 

• Fox News ends ties with host Bill O'Reilly

The National Organization for Women, a U.S. feminist organization, is calling on the city and state of New York to launch an independent investigation into what it calls a culture harassment at Fox News.

The groups's president, Terry O'Neill, spoke with As It Happens host Carol Off. Here is a part of their conversation.

Carol Off: What do you think finally forced Bill O'Reilly out of Fox?

Terry O'Neill: Well, it was certainly the reports of $13 million in settlements that I think is embarrassing to Fox as well as to Bill O'Reilly.

So I think that that bad publicity, coupled with an extraordinary outpouring of ordinary people demanding that advertisers stop supporting [The O'Reilly Factor], prompted Fox to take action.

CO: We've known since last summer, since the former chairman of Fox Roger Ales, was forced out — at that time, the Murdochs, the family that owns network, said that this kind of behaviour is not acceptable, this is not the culture that they would like to see at a Fox, and that this was going to be unacceptable. Does it appear that it was still quite acceptable?

TO: It certainly reveals that an in-house review by Fox's own lawyers is utterly incapable of actually revealing the extent of the sexual and racial harassment culture at Fox, and utterly incapable of making serious change. 

CO: What we have heard back from those representing Mr. O'Reilly is that he regards himself to have been a victim in this. ...What do you say to Mr. O'Reilly?

TO: That kind of self-defence is sadly all too common, particularly by abusers. Frankly, I have worked in the area of domestic violence and intimate partner violence for quite some time, and you can consistently see — especially those abusers who are predatory abusers — they are always saying things like that.

CO: If these things were actually going on for all this time, why do you think Fox paid out the money? Why didn't they get rid of him before?

TO: That is exactly the question that needs to answered, and my organization is calling for a thorough independent investigation by New York City authorities and New York state authorities to get at that question exactly.

The folks at the top who have been allowing this culture to remain in place in Fox News need to be fired. They need to be replaced by people who will actually do their jobs. And their job is to protect victims of sexual harassment and hold harasser accountable, not the other way around.

CO: Donald Trump defends Bill O'Reilly. Does it make any difference that the president of the United States is on his side?

TO: I think it makes a great deal of difference. I think it hurts Bill O'Reilly immeasurably. This is a man who bragged about grabbing women by their private parts, which is itself sexual assault. When the grabber-in-chief defends Bill O'Reilly, I think that that encouraged a lot of advertisers to run like crazy away from him.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity. For more on this story, listen to our full interview with Terry O'Neill.