Gawker Reports That Fox News Chief Roger Ailes Spied On Local Newspaper Staff

by Mark Joyella | 4:06 pm, April 18th, 2011

» 21 comments

Gawker makes a buzzworthy accusation about Fox News chief Roger Ailes, saying hes been “caught spying” on staffers of small-town newspapers in New York’s Hudson Valley that Ailes owns with his wife Elizabeth–even using “News Corp security goons” to tail one of the employees–in a big black SUV. “He noticed a black Lincoln Navigator that seemed to be following him, according to several sources familiar with the incident,” Gawker’s John Cook and Hamilton Nolan write, describing how Joe Lindsley “drove aimlessly for a while to make sure he was being followed, and the Navigator stayed on him.”

The Gawker story, which cites “numerous former employees” of Ailes’ papers, but names none of them–suggests Ailes took amazing interest in the words and movements of young staffers–none of whom had anything to do with Fox News or Ailes’ work for News Corp–other than the driver of that black SUV:

Ailes owns the papers personally; they have nothing to do with News Corporation. It’s unclear why News Corporation shareholders were paying for security guards to tail former staffers for Ailes’ unrelated vanity projects.

The writers suggest Ailes is obsessed with the papers and their staff–leading at least three employees to quit:

(Ailes) has run the papers with the singularly paranoid and abusive management style he brings to all his projects, resulting in the defection of his hand-picked editor and two top reporters earlier this month after Ailes told them he’d had them followed, and their private conversations surveilled, to catch them saying mean things about him.

A Fox News spokesperson said the company had nothing to do with the upstate papers, and would forward a request for comment from Gawker directly to Ailes. After the report was published, Gawker says it received an email from Elizabeth Ailes calling the tales of tails and spying “rambling allegations (that) are untrue and in fact not even reality based.”

Elizabeth Ailes, Gawker, Hamilton Holan, Joe Lindsley, John Cook, Roger Ailes

cjd ohio 1

nice story on nameless accusations mediaite, UFO stories coming soon lol
Barack Must Go

Maybe it was simply his boyfriend having him followed to make sure he wasn’t cheating on him with his wife.
Barack Must Go

cjd ohio 1 said:
nice story on nameless accusations mediaite, UFO stories coming soon lol

This story is what I like to refer to as MEDIAite spanking the monkey ‘ to see if anything squirts out.
BatBoy

He noticed a black Lincoln Navigator that seemed to be following him, according to several sources familiar with the incident,”

“He” sounds like someone who is a little paranoid….make that a lot paranoid!

When one has done something, they always think they are being watched.
TVProducer

OH GOD! DON’T MARRY ELIZABETH! WHAT A HORRIBLE PERSON TO WORK FOR AND BE WITH. NEVER EXPERIENCED ANYTHING WORSE THAN HER IN ALL MY YEARS OF WORKING IN THE BUSINESS.

SHE OBVIOUSLY MARRIED ROGER FOR THE $$.. SHE’S MUCH YOUNGER, VERY VERY ATTRACTIVE AND AS COCKY AS THEY COME. A TRUE SUGAR-DADDY HUNTER.

IT’S A SHAME I HAVE TO SAY THIS BECAUSE ON FIRST GLANCE, SHE’S PRETTY COOL. BUT THE REAL BETH COMES OUT… AND SHE TURNS INTO LEONA HELMSLEY.

WHILE SHE WAS HEAD OF PROGRAMING AT AMERICA’S TALKING NETWORK, THE NOW DEFUNCT NBC CABLE NET-TURNED INTO MSNBC, SHE TOLD THE STAFF AT A STAFF MEETING, “IF I WALK BY YOUR POD AND SEE IT’S A MESS, DON’T PUT IT PAST ME TO PUT MY ARM OUT AND KNOCK EVERYTHING OFF YOUR DESKS.”

I BELIEVE SHE BEGAN AT WTNH-TV IN CT; BUT I KNOW SHE ALSO WORKED FOR NBC. ONE OF THOSE FEMALES WHO’S A TRUE B*TCH AND PEOPLE THAT HIRED HER ARE IDIOTS, EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THEM.
Penguin60

From the Gawker article:

“When Ailes accused them, he knew which restaurant they frequented, leading the three to believe that Ailes wasn’t merely bluffing and that he’d actually had them followed.”

“After Lindsley quit for good, things got weirder. He was driving to a deli in Cold Spring for lunch earlier this month when he noticed a black Lincoln Navigator that seemed to be following him, according to several sources familiar with the incident. Lindsley drove aimlessly for a while to make sure he was being followed, and the Navigator stayed on him. Then he got a look at the driver, who was a News Corporation security staffer that Lindsley happened to know socially. Lindsley continued on his way and later called the driver to ask if he was following him. The answer was yes, at Ailes’ direction.”

Any comment from the driver? Name, statement?

Obviously Ailes is guilty. (roll eye thing)
kvon

Barack Must Go said:
This story is what I like to refer to as MEDIAite spanking the monkey ‘ to see if anything squirts out.

You’re so convinced that Mediaite is left leaning, but you spend all your time in the comment section…odd.
Barack Must Go

kvon said:
You’re so convinced that Mediaite is left leaning, but you spend all your time in the comment section…odd.

I’ve tried, they won’t let me in anywhere else. Can you help me? There’s a $20 in it for ya.
WCinWI

cjd ohio 1 said:
nice story on nameless accusations mediaite, UFO stories coming soon lol

Politico does the same thing. Unnamed staffers says X about X. Even if the story was true, business owners spy on their employees all the time. Why do IT departments exists? Geez people. :)
BeckFinallyDemoted

A good way to find out if a right winger is following you is to duck into a library.

They can’t go in there.

It’s their kryptonite.
WCinWI

BeckFinallyDemoted said:
A good way to find out if a right winger is following you is to duck into a library.

They can’t go in there.

It’s their kryptonite.

I would bet that more “right wingers” have studies in their homes versus liberals. :) I’ve had numerous library cards in multiple states. I’ve always gone to libraries – through both undergraduate and graduate degrees. You need to work on your one-liners. They’re getting a lil’ stale.
Barack Must Go

WCinWI said:
I would bet that more “right wingers” have studies in their homes versus liberals. :) I’ve had numerous library cards in multiple states. I’ve always gone to libraries – through both undergraduate and graduate degrees. You need to work on your one-liners. They’re getting a lil’ stale.

I have a throne in the main library in my house. So go _____ yourself BFD.
skyfet

Am not surprised by anything Ailes does.
BeckFinallyDemoted

WCinWI said:
I would bet that more “right wingers” have studies in their homes versus liberals.

If they do it’s just for show.

Like them going to church on Sundays.
OxyCon

What’s this, more MediaMatters styled crap attack on Fox News?
X-3

cjd ohio 1 said:
nice story on nameless accusations mediaite, UFO stories coming soon lol

Well, it is Gawker. What did you expect, professional journalism? HA!
X-3

OxyCon said:
What’s this, more MediaMatters styled crap attack on Fox News?

Were you expecting something different?
Penguin60

BeckFinallyDemoted said:
Like them going to church on Sundays.

Barry?
greg454

When Assange does it, it’s journalism. When Ailes does it, it’s spying. Really people?

WEAR A VEIL OR DIE: WELCOME TO LONDONISTAN.
http://libertarians4freedom.blogspot.com/2011/04/should-you-wear-veil-if-youre-not.html
timcajun

You will conform to the party……”we have ways of making you talk”!
BOMBSHELL

timcajun said:
You will conform to the party……”we have ways of making you talk”!

Thats what my Daddy, the Goober-Brained Reject is always saying. Are you as smart as he is?

Could you please buy me a kitten?