In making the announcement, Ailes said, “Juan has been a staunch defender of liberal viewpoints since his tenure began at FOX News in 1997. He’s an honest man whose freedom of speech is protected by FOX News on a daily basis.”

Williams joined FNC in 1997 as a contributor and is a regular panelist on FOX Broadcasting’s Sunday morning public affairs program, FOX News Sunday, as well as the weekday political newscast, Special Report with Bret Baier. In addition to his more than 10-year career with NPR, where he was a senior national correspondent and news analyst, William had spent 23 years at the Washington Post. During his tenure at the Post, Williams covered every major political campaign from 1980 to 2000 as a national correspondent and a political columnist.

Williams’ career in media spans back several decades across many platforms. A recipient of several awards for his writing and investigative journalism, he also won an Emmy Award for television documentary writing and has received widespread critical acclaim for numerous projects, including a series of documentaries such as “Politics: The New Black Power” and “A. Phillip Randolph: For Jobs and Freedom.” Additionally, he is the author of six books, including the non-fiction bestseller, “Eyes on the Prize: America’s Civil Rights Years, 1954-1965” and “Thurgood Marshall: American Revolutionary.” Williams has also written numerous articles and has contributed to many national magazines including TIME, Fortune, The Atlantic Monthly, The New Republic, Ebony and GQ.

FOX News Channel (FNC) is a 24-hour general news service covering breaking news as well as political, business and entertainment news. For over 100 consecutive months, FNC has been the most-watched cable news channel in the country. Owned by News Corp., FNC is available in more than 90 million homes.