Gretchen Carlson Defends Lawsuit Against Roger Ailes

A budding legal battle between a popular female news anchor and a powerful male cable news executive continued to escalate Thursday, as Gretchen Carlson challenged Roger Ailes to deny under oath her claims that he made sexual advances toward her.

The back-and-forth, conducted through carefully crafted statements prepared by attorneys, added to an already simmering story in the cable television world.

The 76-year-old Fox News chairman flatly denied Carlson's claims, saying she was fired for her poor ratings and that Carlson had praised him as a boss in her book. Carlson, 50, said her ratings were the best in her time slot and that she would only write in her book what she knew Ailes would approve.

Ailes has long been known as a hyper-controlling boss who keeps a tight lid on his employees, requiring explicit permission before speaking publicly, about the company or otherwise. Carlson, the former "Fox and Friends" host who aired her grievances in a scathing civil complaint Wednesday, turned that notion on its head, putting her former boss at the center of her accusations, which were published in major news outlets and read on cable news Wednesday evening and Thursday morning.

Carlson also accused Fox News personality Steve Doocy of "sexist" treatment in the lawsuit.

A statement from Rupert Murdoch, who owns Fox News, and his sons said that, "While we have full confidence in Mr. Ailes and Mr. Doocy, who have served the company brilliantly for over two decades, we have commenced an internal review of the matter."

READ MORE: Gretchen Carlson Of Fox News Sues Roger Ailes For Sexual Harassment

Ailes denied ever having made sexual advances toward Carlson or off-color remarks to her and other women at the network, calling the lawsuit "not only offensive" but "wholly without merit" in a statement.

He said her contract, which expired June 23, was not renewed because "her disappointingly low ratings were dragging down the afternoon lineup."

Carlson was taken off "Fox & Friends," she says, because she raised complaints about discrimination. She was moved to an afternoon time slot, where ratings are typically lower.

Despite that, a Thursday statement from Carlson's Montclair, New Jersey, attorneys said, "She succeeded and was the number one cable news show in her time slot in total viewers."

Ailes also defended himself by pointing to Carlson's 2015 book, "Getting Real."

"Ironically, FOX News provided her with more on-air opportunities over her 11 year tenure than any other employer in the industry, for which she thanked me in her recent book," Ailes said.

But Carlson said that in the book she was telling her story "while trying to keep her job — knowing that Ailes had to approve what she said."

She said Ailes had previously chastised her for giving an interview to her hometown newspaper about her favorite Minnesota State Fair food.

Images: Roger Ailes by Sgt. Christopher Tobey, Public Domain; Gretchen Carlson, via Facebook