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MPWMost Powerful Women

Gretchen Carlson Returns to TV for the First Time Since Suing Roger Ailes

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Madeline Farber
Madeline Farber
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By
Madeline Farber
Madeline Farber
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January 3, 2017, 1:08 PM ET
Variety's Purpose: The Family Entertainment And Faith-Based Summit In Association With Rogers And Cowan
Photo by Rich Polk — Getty Images for Variety

Gretchen Carlson is back on the air.

On Tuesday, the former Fox News anchor co-hosted the Today Show—the first time she has appeared on live television since filing a sexual harassment lawsuit against former Fox News chairman Roger Ailes in July of last year.

Joining NBC’s Al Roker and Sheinelle Jones, Carlson co-hosted a segment that focused on recent holiday weekend news, telling viewers that she’s looking forward to “new beginnings” in 2017.

Saying that she’s “a huge believer in being optimistic, starting over, and getting a fresh start,” Carlson took the moment to announce that she’s setting up a fund to “empower women and young girls.” The fund will be dedicated to building girls’ confidence, she said, as well as aiding women’s efforts to “fight back.”

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As part of this effort, Carlson said she’s struck a new deal as a columnist for Motto—an online, women-focused publication owned by Fortune parent company Time Inc.—where she will write monthly on issues surrounding women’s empowerment. Her first column will be published in January.

Carlson has kept a relatively low profile since her lawsuit against Ailes, which Fox News parent 21st Century Fox(FOX) settled for a reported $20 million in September. However, in an October interview with Time, she revealed plans to get involved with the fight against forced arbitration, which compels employees to resolve employment disputes—including sexual harassment allegations—privately.

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