Lachlan Murdoch extended Fox News’ remote work policy to Labor Day — but this far-right pundit wants employees to ‘get back in the studio’ ASAP
Lachlan Murdoch, executive chairman and CEO of Fox Corporation and co-chairman of News Corp., recently extended Fox News and Fox Business' remote work policy for employees through at least Labor Day. But when far-right Fox News pundit Greg Gutfeld appeared on the Fox News program "The Five" on April 22, he stridently called for an end to remote work at the right-wing cable news outlet.
More than half of all U.S. residents have been at least partially vaccinated for the COVID-19 coronavirus. Nonetheless, Dr. Anthony Fauci and other medical experts have called for social distancing measures and mask wearing to continue, noting that it is possible to be infected with COVID-19 and spread the disease even if one has been fully vaccinated. The pandemic, according to Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, has killed more than 3 million people worldwide.
After Fox Corp CEO Lachlan Murdoch says remote work will go through Labor Day, a Fox host calls for an immediate re… https://t.co/Cstku93VbW— Media Matters (@Media Matters) 1619133536
The ever-bombastic Gutfeld, however, is fed up with remote work, and he made that abundantly clear on April 22 — telling his colleague Martha MacCallum, "Some of us have gotten COVID and been vaccinated, which essentially, makes you superhuman. Lecturing people on the science as we are sitting in our isolated boxes, is it really correct? I think that it's like — we have to send a message. I mean, what message are we sending by being separate right now? I think it is time to return to the studio."
MacCallum agreed with Gutfeld, saying, "There you go." And Gutfeld went on to argue that maintaining remote work at Fox News is pointless.
"Let's get back in the studio," Gutfeld told MacCallum. "There is no science. We have the vaccines, and we have the rapid testing. There is no reason for us to be doing this all the time, unless it's legal BS — which is probably the case for everything in life. We are controlled by lawyers."
Media Matters' Nikki McCann Ramirez, reporting on Gutfeld's comments, noted, "'The Five' went socially distanced in December after host Juan Williams reportedly tested positive for COVID-19. The network continues to broadcast conspiratorial coverage regarding the COVID-19 vaccine and basic public health precautions, even while the company has internally taken the deadly pandemic seriously."
Here are some responses to Gutfeld's comments:
