New York
Bolling, 54, becomes the third Fox News personality to be removed from the air this year because of allegations of inappropriate behavior in the workplace.
Fox News announced the suspension Saturday following a HuffPost report that Bolling had sent unsolicited photographs of his genitalia to former and current female colleagues at the company several years ago.
“Eric Bolling has been suspended pending the results of an investigation, which is currently underway,” a Fox News spokesperson said. Bolling has denied the allegations through his attorney Michael J. Bowe, according to the HuffPost. The website says it has 14 sources to corroborate the claims.
The potentially career-ending matter will be looked at by Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison, the law firm that has investigated sexual harassment claims against Fox News since July 2016, when former anchor Gretchen Carlson filed a lawsuit against the company’s late chief executive Roger Ailes.
Fox News has been besieged by sexual harassment lawsuits, settlements and complaints ever since Ailes’ ouster. Charles Payne, a host at Fox Business Network, has been suspended since July 6, following a complaint by a female political analyst who said she was coerced into having a sexual relationship with him to secure more on-air appearances and a paid contributor’s job. The complaint remains under investigation. The network’s star anchor, Bill O’Reilly, was pushed out in April after reports that he and Fox had paid out millions to settle harassment claims going back to 2004.
After a career as a commodities trader, Bolling became a commentator at CNBC. He joined Fox Business Network in 2007 and eventually became part of the late afternoon roundtable show The Five on Fox News Channel. After O’Reilly’s departure, The Five moved to prime time, but Bolling stayed in the late afternoon slot to head up a new program Fox News Specialists.
Rotating hosts will fill in for Bolling during the suspension. Bolling also won’t appear on his weekend financial show Cashin’ In.