Fox News host Sean Hannity, known for his close ties to President Donald Trump, implored the president to halt his harsh criticism of the news network. This plea occurred just before Fox News settled a defamation lawsuit with Dominion Voting Systems in 2023, as revealed in a forthcoming book.
The new book, titled “Revenge: The Inside Story of Trump’s Return to Power,” by Axios journalist Alex Isenstadt is scheduled for release on March 18, 2025. The book delves into Hannity’s urgent request to Trump, asking him to cease his onslaught against the conservative network and its chairman, Rupert Murdoch, during a phone call in March 2023.
“Please do not hit Fox; do not hit the Murdoch family. Just please, for the love of God, please don’t do it,” Hannity is quoted as saying, according to an excerpt from Isenstadt’s book, shared by the Washington Post.
This plea occurred amid escalating tension between Trump and Fox News. Trump launched a series of verbal assaults on the network early in 2023, accusing it of conspiring with his political adversary at the time, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, and displaying a distinct bias against his “Make America Great Again” (MAGA) movement.
During the call, Hannity persistently appealed to Trump, expressing his frustration about the president’s attacks on the Murdoch family, which he felt were undermining efforts to support him through Fox News coverage. Hannity suggested that easing his attacks could foster progress towards a more amicable relationship.
Isenstadt’s book claims that Trump allowed his staff to listen to Hannity’s pleas over the phone and responded, “Sean is trying to do the right thing. But, man, the Murdochs? I don’t know.”
The conversation intensified as Hannity sought assistance from Trump’s campaign team, including his then-campaign manager, Susie Wiles. A Fox News spokesperson noted that Wiles emphasized that Trump would operate based on what he deemed fair and beneficial. Hannity later could not remember discussing the issue with Wiles. The call ended with Trump describing Hannity as a “good man.”
The rift between Trump and Fox News had begun to form after the 2022 midterm elections. When Republicans failed to meet expectations in the midterms, several Fox News commentators shifted their support towards Governor DeSantis, especially after his resounding reelection victory.
On November 10, 2022, Stuart Varney, a Fox Business host, suggested that Trump was a figure of the past, while Fox News Digital lauded DeSantis as “the new leader of the Republican Party” and labeled Trump as the “biggest loser.” DeSantis became a prominent figure on Fox News, with at least five live appearances while promoting his book “The Courage to Be Free” in late February 2023.
During this period, Trump’s campaign faced what it referred to as a “soft ban” from the network, which lasted approximately six months, according to reports.
Tensions flared when details from the lawsuit filed by Dominion Voting Systems against Fox News became public. Dominion had sued Fox News for $1.6 billion due to statements made during its 2020 election coverage. Court documents revealed that Murdoch admitted that some Fox News hosts had supported Trump’s disputed claims about the 2020 election being stolen.
Trump capitalized on these revelations, directly attacking Murdoch. He cautioned the media mogul that if he did not believe the 2020 election was “rigged,” he should “get out of the News Business as soon as possible because they are aiding & abetting the DESTRUCTION OF AMERICA with FAKE NEWS.”
Despite Hannity’s attempts to mediate, the relationship remained tense throughout much of 2023. In April 2023, Fox News settled the defamation lawsuit with Dominion Voting Systems for $787.5 million. The settlement did not immediately mend the strained relationship with Trump.
A significant change occurred in September 2023 when Rupert Murdoch resigned as the chairman of Fox Corporation and News Corp. The 92-year-old media tycoon retained the title of chairman emeritus while his son, Lachlan Murdoch, assumed the roles of sole chairman of News Corp and executive chair and CEO of Fox Corp.
This transition in leadership was seen by many as a reset for the relationship between Trump and the network. By early 2024, the relationship had mostly stabilized, and Trump later praised Murdoch during comments at the White House, referring to him as “an amazing guy.”
Even though the 2024 campaign saw occasional flare-ups, particularly concerning Fox News polling and the network’s coverage of his Democratic rival, Trump largely refrained from attacking the Murdoch-owned network with the same fervor he exhibited in the spring of 2023.