Dan Bongino, a prominent right-wing personality on Fox News who is friends with Donald Trump, has announced his departure from the network due to a failure to come to terms on a new contract. Bongino had been a contributor since 2019 and began hosting the Saturday-night program “Unfiltered With Dan Bongino” on Fox News in 2021.
Bongino emphasized that the decision was not based on any acrimony or conspiracy, but simply an inability to reach an agreement. He expressed his appreciation for the network’s support over the past decade, noting that he had enjoyed the freedom to cover the topics he wanted to cover and to host a show that reflected his views.
Despite his departure, Bongino has maintained that there is no ill will between him and the network. He even thanked Fox News for allowing him to do one last show before his exit.
Bongino has established himself as a prominent conservative voice in recent years, drawing on his background as a former New York City police officer and Secret Service agent to lend credibility to his commentary. He has also hosted popular radio programs, including one that replaced the long-running show hosted by Rush Limbaugh.
Although Bongino has been known to amplify dubious controversies and conspiracy theories, such as challenging policies that require vaccination against COVID-19 or suggesting that Democrats were attempting to orchestrate a coup during the 2020 presidential election, he remains one of the most popular pundits in conservative-media circles.
“I really enjoyed myself there and you know they were good to me for ten years. I mean they allowed me to do a show called ‘Unfiltered,’ did what we wanted to do over there and covered the topics we wanted to cover. And it’s a sad day. It’s a sad day,” he said. “They did give me the opportunity to do one last show. I don’t want you to think they like, showed me the door, that’s on me, not on them. But I just thought it was best to kind of go this way for now. Like I said, it’s not acrimonious. I have a great team over there.”
Fox News has expressed its gratitude for Bongino’s contributions and wished him success in his future endeavors. The network plans to fill Bongino’s Saturday-night time slot with “Lawrence Jones Cross Country” and will air an encore of the weekday 11 p.m. program “Gutfeld!” at 10 p.m. while preparing to unveil a new schedule in the coming weeks.
