Fox News anchor Megyn Kelly appears on the cover of this month’s Variety for the entertainment trade’s annual “Power of Women” issue, which honors the philanthropic work of prominent female figures in media and entertainment.
Kelly shares this year’s honors with actresses Lupita Nyong’o and Julianne Moore, fashion designer Vera Wang and renowned ballet dancer Misty Copeland. The five women will be feted at Variety‘s Power of Women luncheon in Manhattan on April 8.
Kelly will be recognized for her work with Childhelp, a non-profit organization that aids victims of child abuse with education treatment and prevention programs. Kelly has worked with the nonprofit for years and has promoted them on Fox News on several occasions.
As part of the outlet’s special issue, Kelly spoke at length about her public battle with GOP presidential frontrunner Donald Trump, her desire to interview Democrat frontrunner Hillary Clinton and her future at Fox News.
Here are the top 5 things we learned from Kelly’s Variety interview:
1. She may not be at Fox News for much longer.
Kelly told the outlet that she hasn’t yet decided whether she’ll stay at the top-rated news network past this year’s election, when her contract expires — though she did say network head Roger Ailes has been supportive of her in her public feud with Trump.
“Never say never. I don’t know what’s going to happen,” she said. “I’ve had a great 12 years here, and I really like working for Roger Ailes. I really like my show, and I love my team. But you know, there’s a lot of brain damage that comes from the job. There was probably less brain damage when I worked in the afternoon. I was less well known. I had far less conflict in my life.”
2. She has tough questions she wants to ask Hillary Clinton, but the candidate hasn’t agreed to sit down with her yet.
“She is [the hold-up],” Kelly replied when asked why she hasn’t yet interviewed Clinton. “Actually, I haven’t gotten close enough to find out how she feels. She’s surrounded by so many circles, it’s like you can’t get through. I hope she’s not going to govern like this. Am I really that scary? I’m a tough interviewer when it comes to these politicians, for sure. But how can she say she deserves George Washington’s job and not sit with me?”
Kelly added that some of her “dream interviews” would include the pope, Vladmir Putin, Bashar Assad, Bill Clinton, and Melania Trump.
3. She wishes the feud with Donald Trump never happened.
“Has it been hard for you?” Variety asked the anchor.
“It has not been enjoyable,” Kelly replied. “I wish it hadn’t happened. I hope it will stop — his focus on me. If he’s determined not to stop, there’s nothing I can do. I don’t like being the story. I think it raises real First Amendment issues. I’ve seen what’s happened with Michelle Fields and in my own world, there’s another side to this behavior. It poses real risks to the person under attack.”
Kelly also says she’s trying not to let her feud with Trump color the way she covers the candidate.
“I don’t want to be covering the news in a way that’s fearful, or a way that seeks to curry favor or prove something,” she said. “It is difficult, because Trump generates a lot of controversy, often intentionally. So you have to cover that as a reporter. I’ll channel surf. I’ll look at CNN, or I’ll look at my pals Bill [Hemmer] and Martha [MacCallum], who are co-hosting my old show. We’re the same. I give him no more coverage than the other journalists give him.”
4. She’s staying away from social media.
“I barely go on Twitter anymore,” Kelly said. “I go on for the news. I don’t go to the mentions. Whenever I go to the mentions, I’m sorry I did.”
5. She’s “sad” about the “mean” tone of this election season.
“I don’t really get surprised with politics. I think it’s sad,” Kelly said of this year’s election season. “I feel sad because I’m raising three young children. I don’t want them to see it. I’m glad they are young. I’m glad they don’t fully appreciate what’s going on. I wish we were doing better as a culture. I don’t know how I can help that. I don’t mean as a journalist; I mean as a human being.”
Kelly added that the biggest story of this election season, when all is said and done, will be what role the media played.
“I think we’re going to have to engage in a lot of soul searching about that,” she added.
Read Kelly’s full interview with Variety here.
Follow Daniel Nussbaum on Twitter: @dznussbaum
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