The television executive has evolved from producing a talk-variety show to running one of the biggest satellite news television channel in the U.S.
Born and raised in Ohio, Roger Ailes attended Ohio University as a young man, majoring in radio and television. During his time there, he served as station manager for the university’s WOUB radio for two years.
Ailes worked his way up to executive producer on the syndicated daytime talk show “The Mike Douglas Show,” which began as a local program in Cleveland before expanding nationwide.
In 1968, Ailes got an Emmy nod when “The Mike Douglas Show” was nominated for Outstanding Achievement in Daytime Programming, ultimately losing to NBC’s “Today” show.
After first meeting Richard Nixon on the set of “The Mike Douglas Show,” Ailes was hired by the then-presidential candidate to be his media advisor during the campaign, which marked his first professional foray into politics.
Ailes continued consulting on presidential campaigns, serving as media consultant for three successful Republicans: Nixon, Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush.
Ailes produced the famous “revolving door” ad for Bush, which painted Democratic nominee Michael Dukakis as soft on crime. The piece was widely regarded as the most influential ad of the political cycle.
In 1988, Ailes co-authored a self-help book with Jon Kraushar. “You Are the Message” shared Ailes’ tips for effective communication and public performances.
In 1992, Ailes served as executive producer on a syndicated late-night talk show hosted by right-wing radio host Rush Limbaugh, which ran for four years before coming to an end in 1996.
Ailes was named president of CNBC in 1993, where he launched the new cable network America’s Talking, which was shut down and replaced with future Fox News competitor MSNBC.
Media mogul Rupert Murdoch hired Ailes to serve as founding CEO and Chariman of the Fox News Channel in 1996, which soon grew to become the most popular cable news network in the country.
In 2016, Ailes was accused of sexual harassment by ousted Fox News host Gretchen Carlson. In July, Carlson filed a lawsuit against Ailes, claiming years of inappropriate behavior and sexual advances.
On July 20, 2016, Ailes was forced to resign from Fox News amid the growing outcry over the sexual harassment allegations.
Ailes died on May 18, 2017 at age 77.
