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Now Bill O'Reilly is claiming he's a victim

http://www.thesmokinggun.com/archive/1013043mackris1.html

Hi, I'm Bill O'Reilly... thanks for watching us tonight... we are living in treacherous times. That's the subject of this evening's Talking Points Memo.

Just about every famous person I know has been threatened and worked over by somebody. Fame makes you a target... it is something that has to be taken seriously. As I've mentioned before, I have received many threats over the years... everything from death letters to some guy running around the country offering people $25 thousand to sign affidavits accusing me of whatever.

The lawyers here at Fox News have been great in dealing with these situations... although the stuff printed on websites remain almost impossible do deal with. But there comes a time when enough's enough.... and so this morning I had to file a lawsuit against some people who are demanding $60 million, or they will "punish me and Fox News."

$60 million.

In a case like this, you have to fight, even at some risk. These people trying to extort this money from us will lob all kinds of charges, knowing that some in the press who don't like me or Fox News will gleefully pick the stuff up. But in the end the justice system will take care of this situation... I have to believe that, because I am simply not going to allow these people to extort me, or anyone else.

Obviously, I can't get into specifics as the litigation is in motion, but I do respect my audience and feel you should know exactly what's going on. This is the single most evil thing I have ever experienced... and I've seen a lot. But these people picked the wrong guy. They can throw anything they want at me, I'll take it. And in the end... we'll see who's left standing. And that's the memo.​
 
There is such a lawsuit - sexual harrassment.

This is typical O'Reilly - the master of the preemptive strike. As soon as he heard this woman was filing a suit he went public to discredit her and try to gain the initiative.

He knows his audience and that 90% of them will find a way to believe whatever he is putting out. From what I have read he could be in trouble on this one.

http://www.thesmokinggun.com/archive/1013043mackris1.html
 
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with all the youngins' on this BP board... you can learn from this...

we all say a lot of stuff at work in jest and sometimes just to be nice or kind.. but in today's world it can come back to bite you in the ass...

guess O'Reilley told this gal who just had a divorce she might want to buy a vibrator.. and I know I've made jokes like that with people I thought were close to me... but ya never quite know...

knew a very straight-laced guy who thought he was being personable to a subordinate and sometimes would tell her how nice she looked that day or that he liked her hair that day... she didn't get a promotion she wanted.. and bang, there came the sexual harassment lawsuit... and guess who got the promo... and who got a letter in his file...

don't be naive and think your company will stand up for who and what is right.. they don't want in any lawsuits... and they'll sell your butt right down the river if it saves them money...

oh, and off the record, I can see O'Reilley saying everything this gal said he did... but that's not the point
 
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I don't know, man. I read most of the complaint at the Smoking Gun, and some of that stuff seemed pretty over-the-top. I mean, it made Clarence Thomas look like a bastion of virtue. I won't say that none of what she is saying could be true, but it looks to me like some serious exaggerations to extort money, because I can't see anyone with any desire to maintain their career (which clearly he has) saying half that stuff, in gest or not. Who knows..."I could be wrong".
 
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As a conservative, I don't want to see any conservatives (or anyone for that matter) falsely accused of anything. If this isn't true, then I certainly hope the accuser's career is ruined over this. If it *is* true, then I hope O'Reilly's career is ruined because of it.

Either way, I think O'Reilly is an arrogant putz.
 
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I read most of the complaint at the Smoking Gun, and some of that stuff seemed pretty over-the-top

I read that also and to be honest it sounds like stuff O'Reilly might say (I have heard him kidding around on his show about porn stars and the like).

NJ Buckeye is correct. The problem us guys have is we don't do a good job reading the signals we get from women we are kidding with. We think that little chuckle means we are funny when it really means they are embarrased. The part of the O'Reilly complaint I would question is how clear she was about being offended. But the bottom line is that if he said this stuff (and don't be surprised if some of it is no tape) he has only himself to blame.

I used to tell people that my career goal was to get high enough in the organization that if some sweet young thing wanted to sleep her way to the top she had to go through me. Once I got there I had to lose that line in a hurry. (They always found a way around me anyhow.)
 
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Supposedly the accuser tape-recorded some of their conversations. That would be bad for O'Reilly. (that is the rumor based on the specific comments shown in the complaint, but I don't believe there is any other evidence of it.)

Also, according to the Today show today, or rather the lawyer on it, they just came from two weeks of settlement talks with Fox. Two weeks of settlement talks over a false claim? Of course, that could happen.
 
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Two weeks is nothing. Trust me, I work in litigation, and the company's potential exposure is huge. Even a false claim could well be worth millions of dollars, once you factor in the potential exposure (should they lose, and it's always a risk) and the actual expense of paying the attorneys, experts, etc.
 
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They wanted 60 million dollars for talk about vibrators and fantasy sex talk. Is that really worth 60 million dollars to anyone?


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Then in January 2004, Mackris ultimately decided to leave the show to accept an even higher-paying position with CNN, Fox’s major competitor. A few months after leaving Fox, however, Mackris spoke with O’Reilly and expressed unhappiness with her new job at CNN. She said that her boss at CNN had been terminated for sexual harassment, and asked O’Reilly if she could return to The O’Reilly Factor at the higher salary she then earned at CNN. Mackris returned to Fox in July 2004 as an Associate Producer for The O’Reilly Factor at a salary of $93,200.

Wow, no loyalty here. 93K is a shitty salary in NYC.

Fox and News Corp representatives spoke with and met several times with Morelli and his associate, David S. Ratner. Mackris attended one of the meetings. At those meetings and during telephone conversations, Defendants demanded $60 million in hush money to keep quiet and never once lowered this outrageous, extortionate demand. At one of the meetings, Morelli allowed the Fox and News Corp representatives to read a draft of a harassment complaint (“the draft complaint”) that he threatened to file on Mackris’s behalf.

I am not a lawyer but is this kind of bullying considered extortion?

What a mess O'Reilly got himself into.
 
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