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Amid a slew of high-profile departures from sponsors of Laura Ingraham’s Fox News program after she opted to mock a Parkland shooting survivor, the host announced a “pre-planned vacation” that had everyone wondering whether a firing was imminent.
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Ingraham’s move was strikingly reminiscent of former Fox host Bill O’Reilly’s own “pre-planned vacation,” which he took before ultimately being ousted from the network after his advertisers jumped ship in similar fashion.
However, in a surprise move, Fox News co-president Jack Abernethy pushed back against the rumors.
“We cannot and will not allow voices to be censored by agenda-driven intimidation efforts,” Abernethy said in a statement to the Los Angeles Times. “We look forward to having Laura Ingraham back hosting her program next Monday when she returns from spring vacation with her children.”
The shameful announcement comes as nearly two dozen companies have abandoned the Fox News host after her misguided attack on 17-year-old David Hogg’s unfortunate college rejections.
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David Hogg Rejected By Four Colleges To Which He Applied and whines about it. (Dinged by UCLA with a 4.1 GPA…totally predictable given acceptance rates.) https://t.co/wflA4hWHXY
— Laura Ingraham (@IngrahamAngle) March 28, 2018
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As of now, sponsors including Bayer, Honda, Miracle-Ear, Principal, Ruby Tuesday, Liberty Mutual, Office Depot, Nestle, Wayfair, TripAdvisor, Nutrish, Expedia, Entertainment Studios, Joseph A. Banks, Hulu, Stitch Fix, Atlantis Bahamas, Jenny Craig, and Johnson & Johnson have all boycotted Ingraham after her misguided remarks.
Their departures come only days after Hogg – along with the help of his friends, all of whom wield a lot of power with their social media followings – took to Twitter to demand Ingraham’s advertisers pull their sponsorship from her program.
Pick a number 1-12 contact the company next to that #
Top Laura Ingraham Advertisers
1. @sleepnumber
2. @ATT
3. Nutrish
4. @Allstate & @esurance
5. @Bayer
6. @RocketMortgage Mortgage
7. @LibertyMutual
8. @Arbys
9. @TripAdvisor
10. @Nestle
11. @hulu
12. @Wayfair— David Hogg (@davidhogg111) March 29, 2018
Amid the exodus, Ingraham did attempt to issue a half-hearted apology to Hogg.
Any student should be proud of a 4.2 GPA —incl. @DavidHogg111. On reflection, in the spirit of Holy Week, I apologize for any upset or hurt my tweet caused him or any of the brave victims of Parkland. For the record, I believe my show was the first to feature David…(1/2)
— Laura Ingraham (@IngrahamAngle) March 29, 2018
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… immediately after that horrific shooting and even noted how "poised" he was given the tragedy. As always, he’s welcome to return to the show anytime for a productive discussion. WATCH: https://t.co/5wcd00wWpd (2/2)
— Laura Ingraham (@IngrahamAngle) March 29, 2018
But Hogg, for his part, firmly rejected the transparent olive branch.
I 100% agree an apology in an effort just to save your advertisers is not enough. I will only accept your apology only if you denounce the way your network has treated my friends and I️ in this fight. It’s time to love thy neighbor, not mudsling at children. https://t.co/H0yWs4zMGk
— David Hogg (@davidhogg111) March 29, 2018
The fact that Fox News is standing by an employee who opted to attack teenage mass shooting survivors speaks volumes about the outlet’s “integrity.”
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