FOX host Charles Payne suspended amid sexual harassment claims


Charles Payne, who hosted Making Money on Fox Business Network, has been suspended amid sexual harassment claims made against him by a former female colleague.

Payne has said that he had a "romantic relationship" with a political analyst for about three years.

"We take issues of this nature extremely seriously and have a zero-tolerance policy for any professional misconduct," a Fox Business Network spokesman said in a statement to the Los Angeles Times. "This matter is being thoroughly investigated and we are taking all of the appropriate steps to reach a resolution in a timely manner."

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The Huffington Post identified the woman accusing Payne as conservative analyst Scottie Nell Hughes, who said that she was kicked off of the network when she cut off her affair with Payne and tried to report him to Fox executives. According to Hughes, as soon as she reported Payne, her television appearances were immediately cut back until she finally resigned from the network on May 1.

Hughes, who denies having any sexual contact with Payne, claims that she stayed in a relationship with him because she thought that it would benefit her career if she was able to secure herself a permanent job at Fox.

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