Factor This: It Ain't the "No Sin Zone"

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Factor This: It Ain't the "No Sin Zone"

Date Created: Oct 14, 2004, 02:11 PM

You've probably heard by now that Bill O'Reilly is being sued for sexual harassment. The suit has been filed by a Fox News producer who says the top-rated host repeatedly pressured her for phone sex. Predictably, perhaps, O'Reilly says the charge is politically-motivated extortion and he has filed a counter-suit.

The 33-year-old plaintiff, Andrea Mackris, charges that O'Reilly has repeatedly and explicitly spoken to her about masturbation, vibrators, and oral sex. Furthermore, Mackris says O'Reilly threatened that any woman who accused him of sexual harassment would "pay so dearly that she'll wish she'd never been born."

Of course the charges against O'Reilly are just that -- charges; they have not been proven. However, either way, this is not a good thing for the talk show host.

The lawsuit itself is posted on a website called "The Smoking Gun." It is not wholesome reading.

O'Reilly's suit is also on the Smoking Gun site. It does not refute claims of inappropriate conversation, but rather argues that Mackris did not complain to her supervisors in accordance with the FNC sexual harassment policy nor did any touching take place.

Even if O'Reilly is not guilty of sexual harassment, the married father of two appears hypocritical. As the Los Angeles Times puts it, O'Reilly is "an insistent advocate for personal responsibility and self-control."

Incidentally, it was a year ago -- almost to the day -- that we learned that Rush Limbaugh, also known for advocating personal responsibility, was addicted to pain killers.