Fox News Veteran Shepard Smith Makes Surprise Resignation From Network On-Air

Longtime Fox News anchor Shepard Smith surprised his co-workers, viewers and fellow journalists on Friday after announcing his surprise departure from the company. Smith signed off from his daily news program and announced the end of his 23-year career with the company.

The Fox News lead anchor’s departure was announced through a statement by Fox News shortly before the on-air statement from Smith. Friday’s show was his final appearance and he will be replaced by a series of rotating anchors until Fox News announces a replacement program for the 3 p.m. ET slot.

Shepard opened his closing statement by defining it as a personal moment.

“Gathering and reporting the news has been my life’s work. 33 years. The past 23 right here, since the day we launched in 1996. The opportunities afforded this guy from small town Mississippi have been many. FOX News has allowed me to travel the country and the world gathering the facts of the day for you at Columbine, Katrina, Iraq, Israel, Lebanon, 9/11 and every life-altering event along the way. I’ve met leaders, heroes and victims of all stripes. I’ve witnessed and reported on the events that shaped our reality,” Smith said on the broadcast. “Together with my colleagues we’ve written a first draft of history and endeavored to deliver it to you, while speaking truth to power without fear or favor, in context and with perspective. I’m eternally grateful for the opportunity. For handing me the breaking news reigns as managing editor, senior correspondent and chief news anchor for this network, I’m thankful and humbled.”

“I asked the company to allow me to leave FOX News. After requesting that I stay, they obliged. Under our agreement, I won’t be reporting elsewhere at least in the near future. But I will be able to see more of Gio and Lucia and our friends and family. Then, we’ll see what comes along,” Smith continued. “This is my last newscast here. Thank you for watching today and over the decades as I traveled to many of your communities and anchored this program, Studio B and Fox Report… plus endless marathon hours of breaking news. It’s been an honor and my pleasure.”

The announcement was clearly a surprise to many on the network. Neil Cavuto opened his own show with a look of surprise on his face before praising Smith on his years of reporting.

White House reporter John Roberts also shared his shock with Cavuto, comparing the announcement to being “hit with a subway train.”

Smith’s departure follows a tense few years between the network’s opinion side, its news side and the focus of President Donald Trump. Smith has not been quiet about his disagreements over the president’s policies and it has even made him the target of some co-workers at Fox. This includes Sean Hannity, Tucker Carlson and Laura Ingraham, leaving Smith to say the following in Time interview from 2018.

“We serve different masters. We work for different reporting chains, we have different rules. They don’t really have rules on the opinion side. They can say whatever they want. If it’s their opinion,” Smith told the outlet.

There was little criticism in the statement released by Fox News President and Executive Editor Jay Wallace.

“Shep is one of the premier newscasters of his generation and his extraordinary body of work is among the finest journalism in the industry. His integrity and outstanding reporting from the field helped put FOX News on the map and there is simply no better breaking news anchor who has the ability to transport a viewer to a place of conflict, tragedy, despair or elation through his masterful delivery,” Wallace said of Smith. “We are proud of the signature reporting and anchoring style he honed at FOX News, along with everything he accomplished here during his monumental 23-year tenure. While this day is especially difficult as his former producer, we respect his decision and are deeply grateful for his immense contributions to the entire network.”

Before closing his sign-off, Smith seemed to reference the discord between Fox News, the media and the current administration in Washington.

“Even in our currently polarized nation, it’s my hope that the facts will win the day. That the truth will always matter,” Smith said. “That journalism and journalists will thrive.”