the o'reilly factor

Sexual-Harassment Claims Aren’t Hurting Bill O’Reilly’s Ratings One Bit

Photo: Ilya S. Savenok/Getty Images

Advertisers might be fleeing The O’Reilly Factor in droves, but that doesn’t mean viewers are. Last week’s damning report in the New York Times about the litany of sexual-harassment allegations against Bill O’Reilly and subsequent payouts caused 24 different advertisers to yank commercials from the show. However, that hasn’t deterred viewers, who have been watching in increasing numbers last week. According to USA Today, “On Monday and Tuesday it had 3.7 million and 3.8 million viewers, respectively, up 14% from the same two nights last week.”

Despite the harassment claims against O’Reilly and the ensuing settlements — not to mention his recent comment that California congresswoman Maxine Waters’s hair looks like a “James Brown wig” — Fox just renewed the host’s contract. None other than President Donald Trump has come out in support of O’Reilly; he said last week, “I don’t think Bill did anything wrong.” Apparently, neither do viewers.

Sexual-Harassment Claims Aren’t Hurting O’Reilly’s Ratings