Fox News Denies Shepard Smith Move Was a Result of Him Wanting to Come Out As Gay

After tweaking anchor Shepard Smith’s newsroom duties in 2013, Fox News has denied allegations that the changes were a result of Smith asking to come out as gay.

A story published by Gawker alleges that Smith was taken off of the primetime-aired “Fox Report” after attending Fox News topper Roger Ailes’ annual Fourth of July picnic with his reported boyfriend. Gawker’s story reports that around the same time, Smith was renegotiating his contract with the network and that he had asked Ailes for the go-ahead to publicly acknowledge his sexuality.

In a joint statement, Ailes and Smith called the story “100% false and a complete fabrication.”