Pro-Trump Fox News commentator accuses Fox News anchor of rape

This Monday, political commentator and Trump surrogate Scottie Nell Hughes filed a lawsuit against Fox News alleging that the network retaliated against her after she complained that Fox Business anchor Charles Payne raped her.

According to the New York Times, Hughes says Payne “pressured” his way into her hotel room in July 2013 and “coerced her to have sexual intercourse with him, even though she had refused his advances by telling him ‘no’ and ‘stop.'”

“In July of 2013, I was raped by Charles Payne. In July of 2017, I was raped again by Fox News. Since then, I have been living an absolute hell,” Hughes told The Times. Payne returned to Fox this month after being suspended while the network conducted an investigation.

In a statement after the lawsuit was filed, Hughes says it “speaks for itself.”

“What is most important to me is that justice will prevent other women from going through the nightmare I’m now living,” she said.

From The New York Times:

According to the suit, Ms. Hughes was “shocked and ashamed” and did not immediately report the incident. She said that over the next two years she was forced to engage in a sexual relationship with Mr. Payne. In exchange, she said, she received career opportunities, including increased appearances on Fox News and Fox Business and the promise that Mr. Payne would help her land a contributor contract, a job that can pay several hundred thousand dollars a year. Ms. Hughes never became a paid contributor at either channel.

Hughes was a regular guest on Fox News and Fox Business from 2013 through 2016. According to her suit, she was blacklisted by the network after she ended the relationship with Payne. When she reported her allegations against him, Fox allegedly leaked a story to the media, framing it as a “romantic affair.”

“In July of 2013, I was raped by Charles Payne,” Hughes said according to The Times. “In July of 2017, I was raped again by Fox News. Since then, I have been living an absolute hell.”

You can read The Times’ full report here.

Featured image via screen grab

Sky Palma

Before launching DeadState back in 2012, Sky Palma has been blogging about politics, social issues and religion for over a decade. He lives in Los Angeles and also enjoys Brazilian jiu jitsu, chess, music and art.