In his upcoming book, “Network of Lies: The Epic Saga of Fox News, Donald Trump, and the Battle for American Democracy,” former CNN chief media correspondent Brian Stelter details Fox News host Jeanine Pirro’s rocky relationship with Fox News management.
According to the book, Pirro’s move to regular co-host on “The Five” was actually intended by Fox News management to be a demotion after her now-canceled weekend show, “Justice with Judge Jeanine,” was one of the key promoters of the false claim that the 2020 election was rigged thanks in part to Dominion Voting Systems. Fox News went on to settle with Dominion for a whopping $787.5 million.
Two unnamed sources told Stelter that “Pirro was a problem” due to her “stubborn, slavish Trumpiness,” and that she had “clashed with Fox execs who’d grown tired of her histrionic shenanigans.” Pirro had also allegedly accused management of “censorship” when they suggested changes to the opening monologues of her weekend show “Justice with Judge Jeanine.”
Pirro had become so unmanageable that her own executive producer had called her a “reckless maniac,” as a filing in the Dominion lawsuit previously indicated. And according to Stelter, that recklessness led to Fox executives canceling her show.
As a result, since “nobody wanted to deal with her,” according to one of the sources, Pirro was moved to “The Five,” where she could no longer write monologues or choose her own guests.
While Pirro’s “demotion” to “The Five” resulted in her gaining a far larger viewership, Stelter wrote that “it was pointed out to me that ‘The Five’ is not the cushiest job for a seventy-something former prosecutor to hold,” and that the switch up made it easier for “the managers and lawyers.”
A source with knowledge of the matter told Mediaite that demotion is completely inaccurate noting “you don’t get demoted to the number one show in cable news that’s on 5 nights a week.”
Analysis
Stelter’s book provides a behind-the-scenes look at Pirro’s relationship with Fox News management, and it paints a picture of a host who was difficult to work with and who often clashed with executives. Pirro’s promotion to “The Five” was likely seen as a way to manage her and to prevent her from further promoting false claims about the 2020 election.
However, it is important to note that Pirro remains a popular figure among Fox News viewers, and her move to “The Five” has resulted in her gaining a larger audience. It is also worth noting that the source who disputed Stelter’s characterization of Pirro’s move to “The Five” is anonymous, and it is unclear whether they have direct knowledge of the situation.
Ultimately, it is up to each individual viewer to decide whether or not they believe Stelter’s reporting. However, his book does provide a fascinating look at the inner workings of Fox News and at the relationship between the network and its hosts.
