Report: Fox News, Gretchen Carlson Settlement ThisClose

Gretchen Carlson

For Gretchen Carlson, a big settlement in her sexual harassment lawsuit against Roger Ailes might be the best outcome personally, according to Margaret Sullivan, media writer at The Washington Post.

Sullivan writes, the former Fox News host would get to make her point, pick up an eight-figure check, pay her legal bills and move on with her life, which includes raising two middle-school-age children.

A settlement — which could happen within days — would allow the whole thing to fade away. Ailes might pay part of it, as Sarah Ellison at Vanity Fair has reported, but with his reported $40 million golden parachute, that wouldn’t hurt him much. And 21st Century Fox can certainly afford whatever it costs; the news division earns over $1 billion a year in profit.

If the settlement also includes a nondisclosure agreement — essentially, “we pay, and you keep your mouth shut” — the whole subject goes quiet again, at least from Carlson.

A trial, on the other hand, would keep this important subject alive and in the public eye. While it would take many months, maybe even years, to get to court, it would eventually bring all of the ugliness out into the light of day.