Fox News' The Five Just Announced a Major, Permanent Departure

Bonchie reporting for RedState 

Fox News’ The Five just lost a major personality. Juan Williams, who was one of the longest-serving hosts on the show, having been there seven years, will be leaving the show immediately.

Williams announced his departure from the show today, noting that it would be his last show.

Here was his comment per Deadline.

“This is my last day hosting The Five,” Williams said on the show. “Covid taught me a lot of lessons. As the show goes back to the New York studio, I will be staying in D.C. I will be working for Fox out of Washington. My work as a Fox News political analyst will continue.”

But if you think this is a sign that Fox News is waking up to the needs of its viewers, that’s apparently not the motivation here. Williams is leaving due to the fact that the show is returning to the studio in New York. That would require him to go back to commuting from Washington D.C. to the Fox News headquarters. His mention of COVID is odd, as such a commute wouldn’t put him at risk for the disease given he’s been vaccinated so I’d suppose Williams’ age has more to do with this than anything.

He will still be doing political analysis on the network, something I’m not a fan of. After all, he’s the author of hits like why didn’t the cop just shoot in the air and those teens who murdered the Uber Eats driver were just out for a joy ride.

Williams is a lot like Geraldo Rivera in that I simply don’t see the point. Neither offer thoughtful analysis, both clearly being past their prime. They also represent viewpoints that are toxic to the vast majority of the viewership of Fox News. It’d be one thing if they were liberals with a quick wit and a great ability to debate, but they aren’t. I don’t see the value-add. With that said, Williams at least seems like a genuinely nice guy.

As to The Five’s future plans, they’ll be looking for another left-winger to stick in the seat. I suppose that makes Fox News unique compared to MSNBC and CNN, both networks that wouldn’t be caught dead giving a conservative a permanent spot on a major show.

Regardless, I expect The Five to keep dominating in their time slot.