Fox News has reached a settlement of more than $2.5 million with former contributor Tamara N. Holder, who reported that she was sexually assaulted by an executive at the company’s headquarters two years ago, The New York Times reported Wednesday night. Holder alleges that the former executive tried to force her to perform oral sex in February 2015. She didn’t immediately report the alleged incident due to fears that it could ruin her career. Holder reported the allegations to Fox News last fall. Francisco Cortes, the vice president for Fox News Latino, and the executive in question, was reported to be fired after an investigation and Holder left Fox News after her contract expired at the beginning of 2017. In an email to the Times, Holder said: “Yes, I was sexually assaulted. Immediately after I told the company where I worked about the incident, it promptly investigated the matter and took action, which I appreciate.”
Fox News has been enveloped in controversy and numerous accusations of harassment during the era of Roger Ailes, the former chairman and chief executive who left the company last year amid multiple settlements stemming from a sexual-harassment scandal.