Fox News Denies Report: We Didn't Force Ensign To Admit Affair

Fox New is denying claims that Doug Hampton — whose wife Cynthia is the other woman in Senator John Ensign's sex scandal — sent the network a letter pleading for help exposing the affair five days before the Senator announced it in a press conference and that Ensign came forward with the affair because he knew Fox was working on the story.

The Las Vegas Sun reported Friday that Hampton sent Fox News' Megyn Kelly a two-page, single-spaced letter dated June 11 detailing the affair and asking for help in exposing the Senator. The Senator came forward with the affair on June 16 — in part, a spokesman told the Sun, because his office had learned that Hampton approached "a major television news channel."

"We learned of this fact before the news conference," the spokesman told the Sun.

Tom Lowell, senior producer of "America's Newsroom," hosted by Kelly and Bill Hemmer, says no one at Fox News ever received a printed letter, but that a booker on the show received an email from Hampton with the letter attached on June 15 — the day before the Senator's press conference.

"We never received any letter from Mr. Hampton," Lowell told the Huffington Post. "He might have sent it, but we never received it. He did reach out to us about 24 hours before the news conference, and he sent an e-mail to a booker on my staff."

Lowell said that a member of his editorial staff followed up with Hampton that day.

"We followed up with him, but he seemed evasive and not credible, thus we didn't pursue it," he said. "We certainly weren't going to rush to air with accusations against a sitting Senator without doing due diligence on the reputability of the claims.

"We always evaluate people when they call into the newsroom in terms of: does this sound like its solid? Does it sound like its actionable?" Lowell said. "There were some questions here, so we decided that we would make some inquiries but that it wasn't something we needed to move on immediately. And before we could nail everything down and confirm this story the Senator had already announced his press conference.

"We get hundreds and hundreds of items a week," he added. "They could be requests for help, please look into this, I think someone did this...we have to filter all that. Clearly this guy had a story to tell and we just didn't get to it before the Senator got to it."

Lowell also stated emphatically that no one at Fox News reached out to the Senator to alert him about the story.

"I know there are people asking if we alerted the senator," Lowell said. "Definitely no one on our editorial team called anyone in Senator Ensign's office prior to the announcement. We just hadn't gotten to that point of confirming the story yet. Somehow, somebody told the Senator something and I don't know how that happened. But I categorically deny that we ever reached out to the senator in any way shape or form prior to him making his announcement."

Ensign spokesman Tory Mazzola could not be reached for comment Friday morning.

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Comments

[hoobit]

*Technically*, 'the letter' was not *sent* to Fox. To *send* a letter, you use the USPS. "The letter" went to the booker via an email *attachmen­t*...it was not *technically* "sent to" them. Fox can, therefore, deny any responsibi­lity/assoc­iation with the timing of the great Affair Admission Affair. Understand how it works, now?

See how easy it is to hide behind 'technicalities' when it suits your purposes? Fox News does it all the time...par­tial truths, fabrications, brou-ha-has over squat, you name it - all on 'technicalities'. They've honed it to a fine art.

Gives a whole new meaning to the phrase: "Dumb like a fox." And *not* in a good way.

[blood1]

Which is exactly why they are "commentators" and not "reporters". A reporter looks for the truth of the issue while FOX only looks for the SPIN. When FOX starts using words carefully, they are looking to cover-up facts, especially when it may have a negative affect on the GOP.

[noamjunior]

Fox was prepared to run the story.....­. as soon as Ensign changed political parties

[dillydawg]

It doesn't matter what any Republican does it will be either covered up or spinned into irrelevance. It is not the fault of the obvious media culprit (FOXNEWS), it's the fault of the 'so called' tried and trusted media. They help promote the lies, spin and distortions presented by Right Wing Media. They are much worst than FoxNews because they know what is fact from fiction. But they chose to stand by and do nothing to correct the misinformation.

[tj101]

Of course they covered up the "crimes" of one of their own. Fox News isn't a News Channel - it's propaganda.

[lab221]

tj101, Of course all that is on fox news is propaganda. Only the left can make a mistake, not the right wing nuts.

[DRicha8374]

I guess all Ensign have to do is repent and everybody else have to resign, boy this is amazing.

[MillinMn]

Wish I could believe the spokesman for Fox, but their track record for distorting and twisting information to fit their policy bias makes that simply impossible.

Fox is becoming a news generator ... losing as a logical consequence any pretense that they are in the business of covering news. They make the news they want to dish out, reality be damned.

Reminds one of the Hearst newspapers role in triggering the Spanish-American conflict.

Remember the Maine! (The TRUTH about that ship's demise, that is.)

[Rangergirl]

Yeah right, you guys are totally innocent..­...No way

[retromega]

This is really amusing: a debate between a Republican office (among other things) holder and Fox News about facts! I wonder how long this can go on. I always thought both side define facts as those little tidbits you make up to sell the story.

[MikeDu]

I did a quick scan of the posts, didn't find many of the usual RNC intern trolls posting here. Ain't it funny how they shun some topics? I'll just have to do their work for them:
"SOCIALISM caused Ensign to have the aff air!" "Ensigns affair proves Obama a fail ure!" "Ensign mistress link to SDS?"

[timetorevolt]

How about gay marriage?.­.I thought that caused the SOB to cheat, lie, and buy some hot stuff...

Glad it burned him...lol

[HeidiHo]

It was the economy that forced him to have an affair. His house was in foreclosure but luckily he was able to find a newer property.

[ModerateMouse]

Does anyone believe anything that comes out of faux news? I mean except for the 20%ers.

[mizerello]

Yeah right...I'­ve got a bridge to sell anyone who believes FOX's story. They protected their constituency and contacted their senator.

[slipthalo]

"he seemed evasive and not credible, thus we didn't pursue it". Isn't that the mantra of F0X?

[ffny]

Ensign resign in the wake of his extramarital affair and give up his lucrative cushy job with all it's contacts and potential future earnings..­...I love his "Let my constituents be damned, I'm more important" attitude.

Basically what he is, is a man who got caught with his hand in the "Nooky Jar".

[Whitley2009]

Has Ann Coulter written anything on him?

[greysells2]

Waiting for Mr. Limbaugh to comment on dishonesty and sin in government. Sens Craig [R] and Vitter[R] are preparing the "payback" statements as we speak. All these guys are hypocrites with one way zippers.

[kmich718]

It amazees me that if this were a Dem the news networks and Rethugs would be pushing hard for their resignation. When its a rethug? nothing...­and we the people let him get away with it.

Remember Pres. Clinton? Rethugs didn't back down... and they impeached a president for lying about an affair. Bush and Cheney lie us into two wars and torture innocent people and nothing.

The Dems are spineless. Absolutely spineless.­...patheti­c.

[sheikwil4]

i agee if it was a Democratic senator, they would be lupping this over and over on Fox News and on Limbaugh the crackhead radio show and Bill O'Reilly would have a reporter sneaking around the mans house snooping in garbage trying to embarrass him anyway they could. The Republicans are a bunch of hypercrits and this is the same man that Dogged out Bill Clinton for his affair with Monica.