Reporter Ivory Hecker Alleges She's Being "Muzzled" by Station
Jun. 16 2021, Published 5:20 p.m. ET
On Monday, June 14, 2021, reporter Ivory Hecker delivered a slightly different broadcast than Houston's Fox 26 expected. During her Monday 5 p.m. newscast, Ivory was supposed to discuss the current heatwave but added a little more to her report. Ivory's outburst on live television has since made headlines, causing viewers to wonder: What happened to Ivory Hecker? Here's everything we know so far.
What happened to Ivory Hecker? The reporter alleges she was "muzzled" by Fox.
During her scheduled 5 p.m. broadcast, Ivory went off-script to denounce Fox News and claim that she was "muzzled" by them. In video footage obtained by the Houston Chronicle, she says, "I want to let you the viewers know that Fox Corp. has been muzzling me to keep certain information from you, the viewers. And from what I am gathering, I am not the only reporter being subjected to this."
Ivory adds, "I am going to be releasing some recordings about what goes on behind the scenes at Fox because it applies to you, the viewers. I found a nonprofit journalism group called Project Veritas that’s going to help put that out tomorrow, so tune into them." Then, she proceeded with her regular broadcast as though nothing had happened.
Project Veritas is a far-right group operating primarily on YouTube that targets mainstream media and far-left groups. They have been known for spreading misinformation to the point of getting banned from platforms such as Twitter and caught multiple times in attempts to frame or discredit left-leaning groups.
The Houston Chronicle even notes that per The New York Times, Project Veritas even tried to have employees go on dates with FBI agents to try and record them criticizing former President Donald Trump.
On Tuesday, June 15, Project Veritas released secretly recorded audio footage of Ivory and Fox 26 assistant news director Lee Meier and Fox 26's vice president and news director Susan Schiller passing on stories, including Bitcoin and using hydroxychloroquine to treat the COVID-19.
Later Insider confirmed Ivory revealed to The Daily Beast a recording of her getting suspended but that shortly after, she had been fired as a result of the recordings. Ivory had been with Fox 26 since 2017. She also told Daily Beast that she never intends to work in corporate media again.
Ivory said, "I have been longing to part ways with this strange, slightly unhinged corporation since last August when I realized what they were. I would turn down Fox News. They wanted to bring me up to the network. I met a lot of executives there and I don’t want to talk to them anymore. It came from one of the top executives there that what I needed to succeed was to get in line with the narrative."
In addition to her career as a reporter, Ivory has also been moonlighting as a singer-songwriter. Her Instagram account dedicated to music has over 5,000 followers. Let's hope wherever Ivory lands next, she finds the truth she's looking for.
