FNC's Shepard Smith Says Ailes Betrayal Was 'Painful'

Shepard Smith

Shepard Smith has come out as a gay man in a new interview, reports the Daily Mail.

The popular Fox News anchor, who has been with the network since it first launched 20 years ago, spoke about his sexuality in an interview with Huffington Post.

Smith, 52, confirmed the long-circulating rumor when he was asked if it was former Fox News CEO Roger Ailes who prevented him from coming out of the closet.

'That's not true. He was as nice as he could be to me. I loved him like a father,' Smith said of Ailes.
The 'love' Smith had for his old boss is why it was so difficult for him to deal with the network's sexual harassment scandal this past summer.

'I trusted him with my career and with - I trusted him and trusts were betrayed,' Smith said of Ailes.

'People outside this company can't know [how painful that betrayal was]. This place has its enemies, but inside, it was very personal, and very scarring and horrifying.'

It was Gawker that reported back in 2014 that Smith wanted to publicly come out but was told he could not after speaking with Ailes.

'This came up during contract negotiations,' a Fox insider told the website.

'Shep wanted to and was ready to come out, and Roger just said 'no.''

That was not the case at all though according to Smith, who also shot down past reports which claimed that Ailes had made homophobic comments and remarks in his presence.

'He treated me with respect, just respect,' said Smith of Ailes.