One of the biggest names at Fox News, if not always the most popular among its conservative viewers, has announced his departure.
Chris Wallace, who has anchored “Fox News Sunday” since 2003, said good-bye Sunday.
“After 18 years, this is my final ‘Fox News Sunday,’” Wallace said.
“It is the last time — and I say this with real sadness — we will meet like this,” he said.
“Eighteen years ago, the bosses here at Fox promised me they would never interfere with a guest I booked or a question I asked and they kept that promise,” he said.
“I have been free to report to the best of my ability, to cover the stories I think are important, to hold our country’s leaders to account. It’s been a great ride,” he said.
Fox News’ Chris Wallace: “After 18 years, I have decided to leave Fox. I want to try something new, to go beyond politics, to all of the things I’m interested in.” pic.twitter.com/vgMF8Ktdnr
— The Recount (@therecount) December 12, 2021
Wallace noted the presidents he has interviewed and the foreign leaders he has met as among the highlights of his career.
He also thanked the great unseen audience for watching him over the years.
“It may sound corny but I feel we’ve built a community here,” Wallace told viewers.
“There’s a lot you can do on Sunday morning,” he said. “The fact that you’ve chosen to spend this hour with us is something I cherish.
“But after 18 years, I have decided to leave Fox. I want to try something new, to go beyond politics to all the things I’m interested in. I’m ready for a new adventure. And I hope you’ll check it out,” he said, without going into detail.
“And so, for the last time, dear friends, that’s it for today.”
While Wallace might be best known for his Sunday morning interviews, he’s also won fame — and some infamy — for his other activities.
His controversial performance as moderator of the first debate between then-President Donald Trump and then-Democratic candidate Joe Biden won him criticism from Trump supporters who saw the Wallace debate behavior as just part of the mainstream media’s relentless antagonism toward the Trump presidency.
“My bet? He’s going to CNN+,” tweeted Newsbusters Managing Editor Curtis Houck.
#BREAKING: Chris Wallace announces he’s QUITTING Fox News and ‘Fox News Sunday.’ Today was his last show.
My bet? He’s going to CNN+.
— Curtis Houck (@CurtisHouck) December 12, 2021
A permanent host has not been named.
Fox News Media said good-bye in a statement, according to Deadline.
“We are extremely proud of our journalism and the stellar team that Chris Wallace was a part of for 18 years. The legacy of ‘Fox News Sunday’ will continue with our star journalists, many of whom will rotate in the position until a permanent host is named,” the statement said.
This article appeared originally on The Western Journal.