What has Megyn Kelly been up to? The former Fox News and NBC News host, who’s known for her controversial conservative views, has a hit podcast on SiriusXM – and recently interviewed Donald Trump
Once one of the most prominent faces on US TV, with a popular show on prime-time Fox News followed by a daytime talk show on NBC, Megyn Kelly has spent the past few years unapologetically carving out her own brand through her podcast, The Megyn Kelly Show.
She is one of the few US political commentators whose influence has remained solid despite not being on a major network. (She left NBC after making controversial comments about the use of blackface in Halloween costumes.)
With an estimated net worth of US$45 million, according to Celebrity Net Worth, the TV and radio personality has ensured her longevity and continued influence with fans through a lucrative deal with SiriusXM, a satellite-radio platform.
Here’s what you need to know about her …
How is Megyn Kelly’s podcast doing?
Although she is no longer on a major broadcast network, Kelly has found a way to stay in the public eye. She launched her weekday talk programme on SiriusXM in September 2021. The show is broadcasted on the platform’s Triumph channel 111 on weekdays and is available later on major podcast platforms.
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In 2022, TheRighting reported that The Megyn Kelly Show had been the fastest growing conservative talk show podcast in the year’s third quarter. There is also a video version available on SiriusXM and social media platforms.
Kelly said she believed there was a “thirst for open, honest and more meaningful conversations about current events”. In September last year, it was announced that Kelly had signed a new multi-year contract with SiriusXM. Soon after, she interviewed former US president Donald Trump – her first interview with him since 2016.
When did Megyn Kelly last appear on TV?
From her position outside traditional media, Kelly remains an influential political commentator. In December, she was one of the moderators of a Republican primary debate on the fledgling cable network NewsNation.
Kelly moderated the event alongside NewsNation’s Elizabeth Vargas and Eliana Johnson of The Washington Free Beacon, a US conservative political journalism website.
Interestingly, Kelly told Variety as recently as September last year that she could not imagine returning to TV. “I could never go back to having a boss,” she said. “I’m much better off being my own boss and running my own show.”
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When did Megyn Kelly cause controversy?
Last month, Kelly made headlines when The Boys star Erin Moriarty accused the journalist of bullying. Moriarty plays the superheroine Starlight on Amazon Prime Video’s R-rated TV series based on the eponymous comic book, and she was responding to claims she’d had plastic surgery. In a segment on her show, Kelly claimed plastic surgery was a social illness and used images of Moriarty to illustrate an “addiction” to such aesthetic enhancements.
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Kelly, however, is seemingly used to backlash over her comments. In early 2018, she publicly apologised after appearing to promote fat-shaming, per Time. She caused outrage again the same year when she said she didn’t understand why Halloween costumes incorporating blackface are considered racist.
This month, Kelly again made headlines after urging illegal immigrants to leave the US. She made her comments after footage showed undocumented migrants beating up two police officers. Per the New York Post, four of the people in the footage fled the scene.
“Go home! They come to America, they commit crimes, they beat up on cops. They get a free pass out of jail and then it’s the double bird to the rest of America,” Kelly ranted on her show.
Who is Megyn Kelly’s husband?
One man has been there to support Kelly through all the ups and downs: her husband, Douglas Brunt. Last year, the couple celebrated 15 years of marriage and Kelly spoke about the milestone on her show. She urged people to find “meaningful connection” in their lives, saying “this is where the pot of gold is”.
Kelly met her husband on a blind date in 2006, per People. Fourteen months later, they got engaged. Although their swift romance raised eyebrows, Kelly said during The Megyn Kelly Show that Brunt was unlike other men she had dated: “He was kind, he was smart, he was strong but not in a domineering way, and in no way intimidated by me or my strength.” The pair got married in 2008 and have three children together – Edward Yates, Yardley Evans and Thatcher Bray.
Brunt launched his own podcast, Dedicated with Doug Brunt, in October 2022. It focuses on interviewing bestselling authors. Interviewed by his wife on The Megyn Kelly Show, Brunt explained, “These great writers come in … and we have a drink. They choose their favourite drink, which we make on the set, and we get to know the person – which is an experience that you really can’t find anywhere else.”
