Veteran anchor Chris Wallace shook up the broadcast news world Sunday when he announced he would leave Fox News after 18 years at the network and will be joining CNN’s upcoming streaming service. Wallace made the surprise announcement at the end of Fox News Sunday. “After 18 years, this is my final Fox News Sunday. It is the last time—and I say this with real sadness—we will meet like this,” Wallace said at the end of Sunday’s show. Wallace went on to say he had decided to leave Fox because he wants “to try something new, to go beyond politics to all the things I’m interested in.” He added: “I’m ready for a new adventure. And I hope you’ll check it out.”
Although the 74-year-old anchor didn’t detail what that “new adventure” will be, Variety was first to report word that Wallace would be joining CNN+, the news network’s new streaming-video service. CNN later confirmed the rumor, saying that Wallace will be an anchor for the streaming subscription service that is set to launch in the first quarter of next year. Wallace will have a weekday show that will “feature interviews with newsmakers across politics, business, sports and culture,” CNN said. “I am thrilled to join CNN+. After decades in broadcast and cable news, I am excited to explore the world of streaming,” Wallace said. “I look forward to the new freedom and flexibility streaming affords in interviewing major figures across the news landscape—and finding new ways to tell stories.”
On Sunday, Wallace dedicated time to praising his longtime employer. The anchor, who was known for not always following the same editorial line as most other Fox News personalities, said that throughout his time in the network no one ever interfered with his job. “Eighteen years ago, the bosses here at Fox promised me they would never interfere with a guest I booked or a question I asked,” he said. “And they kept that promise.”
A rotating group of hosts will take over for Wallace until a permanent replacement is named, Fox News said. “We are extremely proud of our journalism and the stellar team that Chris Wallace was a part of for 18 years,” Fox News said in a statement. “The legacy of Fox News Sunday will continue with our star journalists.”
Wallace, the son of legendary 60 Minutes reporter Mike Wallace, was a White House correspondent for NBC News until he left for ABC News, where he worked for nearly 15 years before going to Fox in 2003 to host his own Sunday show. Wallace’s resignation comes weeks after two Fox News contributors—Jonah Goldberg and Stephen Hayes—resigned in protest over Tucker Carlson’s special about the Jan. 6 Capitol riot. “Fox News still does real reporting, and there are still responsible conservatives providing valuable opinion and analysis,” the men wrote in an online post explaining their decision. “But the voices of the responsible are being drowned out by the irresponsible.”
