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After over 12 years, longtime anchor Maria Bartiromo is out at Fox Business.
She aired a relatively normal episode Thursday morning. By that afternoon, she was gone.
Bartiromo was a longtime ally of Donald Trump and one of the most recognizable faces at the channel.
Understandably, a lot of folks are wondering what’s going on.
Maria Bartiromo, signing off (abruptly)
On Thursday morning, Maria Bartiromo appeared on her regularly scheduled episode of Mornings with Maria on Fox Business.
At the time, no one — not viewers, and seemingly not Bartiromo herself, knew that it would be her last.
On Thursday afternoon, Fox announced her departure without explanation or fanfare.
“We thank Maria for her work over the last 12 ½ years and wish her all the best on her next chapter,” the company announced in a statement.
And that’s it. But why?
Fox Business did not choose to explain Bartiromo’s abrupt departure from the network.
Instead of answering questions, the network simply pointed to the updated schedule.
Mornings with Maria‘s 6 AM to 9 AM time slot will instead belong to Mornings with FOX Business, starting on Friday, September 4.
(One can only imagine the behind-the-scenes chaos of putting together a three-hour show in less than 24 hours, right before a holiday weekend.)
And, again, saying that they’ve slapped together a generic show with rotating anchors does not really explain anything. At all.
All of her Fox Business roles are getting new anchors
Maria Bartiromo’s Wall Street, a Friday evening series that runs for a half hour, will become FBN’s Wall Street.
Cheryl Casone hosts this week. After this, rotating anchors will take the gig.
Sunday Morning Futures — you’ll never guess which day this 10 AM hour-long program airs — will have Jason Chaffetz as its host this weekend, but another host will come in the future.
It is possible that these rotating anchors will be quietly auditioning to permanently take these spots.
However, it is also possible that the network will avoid letting anchors gain too much brand recognition for themselves, and keep the focus on the show and the network. Only time will tell.
Bartiromo was a long-time ally of Donald Trump. Some suggest that this may have played a role in her firing.
“I can’t believe Maria Bartiromo is no longer going to have her great show(s) on FoxNews/Business,” Trump complained on Truth Social.
“Three different shows, always number one. Maria is a total professional, and a true warrior,” he praised. “Her fans, of which there are many, will not be happy. God bless you, Maria!”
Status has reported that Bartiromo allegedly leaked a Fox directive — one warning employees against voicing or repeating Trump’s baseless 2020 election conspiracy theories — to Trump, which may have resulted in her immediate firing.
We cannot confirm that. Some speculate that Bartiromo could replace Karoline Leavitt as White House spokesperson for the Trump regime, but if that is anyone’s plan, it was not immediately public.
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