Will O'Reilly's Leaving Finally End a Sexist Culture at Fox News?

Having worked at a Fortune 200 company and been involved with numerous acquisitions and one major merger,  the most difficult task in bringing two companies together is dealing with two distinct corporate cultures.  Every company has it's own corporate culture, which usually stems from the personality of its leadership.

Fox News seems no different. The fact that Roger Ailes was forced out only weeks ago for sexual harassment; and, now Bill O'Reilly -- the network's "franchise" -- is forced out for the same reason speaks volumes as to the character and culture of this popular cable station.  Add to this, the fact that a lesser known Fox News personality, Steve Doocy, was also caught up in the sexual harassment story, one can only wonder if this attitude towards women is somewhat pervasive at the network.
The fact that O'Reilly was discharged is a good thing.  It sends a signal that even the network's top personality isn't  protected when sexual harassment is involved.  Thus, if there is a sexist culture alive at Fox News, cold water was just thrown all over it. 

My only problem with this whole sad story is why it took so long to happen.  Apparently, the Murdoch's took a "see no evil, hear no evil" stance while all this was taking place over the years.  For this reason, some fans of Fox News may elect to stop watching the network altogether. Just my opinion.

References:

Fox News Confirms That Bill O'Reilly Won't Return to Air: http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/bill-oreilly-exits-fox-news-harassment-scandal-994675

6 More Women Allege That Roger Ailes Sexually Harassed Them: http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2016/07/six-more-women-allege-ailes-sexual-harassment.html

Outfoxed? Gretchen Carlson’s harassment suit against Fox News chairman Roger Ailes seems to catch the network flat-footed: http://www.politico.com/media/story/2016/07/outfoxed-004650

Fox News employees saw Steve Doocy sexually harass Gretchen Carlson: report: http://www.rawstory.com/2016/07/fox-news-employees-saw-gretchen-carlson-sexually-harassed-by-steve-doocy-report/

Can Fox News Channel Survive Without Roger Ailes?

Much of the success of the Fox News Channel has to be attributed to the man who was at the helm, Roger Ailes.  The shows, their hosts, and their current formats, have all been as a result of Ailes' stewardship since Rupert Murdoch put him in charge.

But now he's out, due to allegations of sexual harassment.  So he walks away, along with the creative genius that kept Fox News on top for years by avoiding the same stale pitfalls that allowed Fox to overthrow CNN from the top slot and stay there.

Additionally, there are now rumors swirling that Sean Hannity, Bill O'Reilly, and Megyn Kelley will also walk when Ailes leaves.  I am quite sure that CNN would be happy to take any of these stars.   So would the alphabet soup of other national broadcast networks.  Should that happen, Fox's entire blockbuster prime time lineup would be decimated.

As many have said, Ailes is akin to being the franchise. and the burning question is whether or not Fox will survive without their super star boss and their prime time stars.  I personally think not. There just aren't a whole bunch of Roger Ailes types out there to keep a station in first place.  If there were, CNN would have regained its former lead and MSNBC would have been licking at it's heels.

References:

Roger Ailes To Exit As Fox News Boss; “In Talks,” Says Lawyer: http://deadline.com/2016/07/roger-ailes-out-at-fox-news-1201788998/

Intrigue at Fox News: Is Roger Ailes out, and is top talent going with him?: http://www.bizjournals.com/newyork/news/2016/07/19/intrigue-at-fox-news-is-roger-ailes-out-and-is-top.html

FOX NEWS CHANNEL MARKS 14 YEARS AS #1 CABLE NEWS CHANNEL IN JANUARY: http://press.foxnews.com/2016/02/fox-news-channel-marks-14-years-as-1-cable-news-channel-in-january/