Story perspectives

Fox Parts Ways With Maria Bartiromo Effective Sept. 3

9/7/2026

Summary

Bartiromo Leaves Fox

Fox News Media announced it will part ways with anchor Maria Bartiromo, effective Sept. 3.
Rotating anchors will host the renamed shows, starting with “Mornings with Fox Business.”
Former Rep. Jason Chaffetz will temporarily host “Sunday Morning Futures.”
Attorney Bryan Freedman said reports that Bartiromo was fired are “absolutely and unequivocally false.”
Reports allege she leaked a Fox directive to the White House about President Donald Trump’s election claims.

Summary

Bartiromo Settles Defamation

Fox paid $787.5 million to settle Dominion’s defamation lawsuit linked to Maria Bartiromo’s election-fraud coverage.
Maria Bartiromo’s ad revenue at Fox fell 58% from 2022 to 2025.
In Q3 2026 “Mornings With Maria” drew only 5,000 viewers aged 25-54, far behind “Squawk Box”.
Bartiromo remains a defendant in Smartmatic’s multibillion-dollar defamation case against Fox.
President Donald Trump appointed Bartiromo to the John F. Kennedy Center board, a role she kept after leaving Fox.

History

Historical Context

After Fox News amplified unfounded 2020 election fraud claims, Smartmatic sued the network in February 2021 and Dominion filed a $1.6 billion defamation suit in March 2021. The April 2023 $787.5 million Dominion settlement and Maria Bartiromo’s exit illustrate how repeated litigation—rooted in the network’s partisan coverage—has forced Fox to tighten fact-checking. Internal emails from Rupert Murdoch in 2022 confirmed executives recognized the allegations were baseless.

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Bartiromo Leaves Fox

Fox News Media announced it will part ways with anchor Maria Bartiromo, effective Sept. 3.
Rotating anchors will host the renamed shows, starting with “Mornings with Fox Business.”
Former Rep. Jason Chaffetz will temporarily host “Sunday Morning Futures.”
Attorney Bryan Freedman said reports that Bartiromo was fired are “absolutely and unequivocally false.”
Reports allege she leaked a Fox directive to the White House about President Donald Trump’s election claims.

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