Transcript for Janice Dean opens up about her career
Meghan and and I were both lucky enough to have Janice Dean at Fox News and she shares just how strong, resilient and hopeful she has been through some traumas that would test anyone. In her new memoir “Mostly sunny”, please welcome the wonderful and sunny Janice Dean. I just have to take a moment because I’m enjoying “The view.” This is amazing. Listen, when I was in Canada — I’m originally from ottawa, Canada, I had a show on radio called the broad perspective. I came up with the idea. It was four women talking about issues and it was based on the show so this a full circle We should give you credit. No, this was already in play. I was just stealing from you ladies. It was after that that you really picked up your life and you came — we know you from fox but you got your big break with don Imus of all people as an editor and entertainment reporter. You say it was the worst job that you ever experienced because he was abusive to you. What did he do? It should have been my best it had everything I had ever learned in broadcasting. It had radio, television. I was writing the news. I was doing something called a scum report which is like an entertainment report with a huge name in broadcasting, don Imus. Like I said, radio and television, it had everything I was good at, but it was the worst job of my career. He was very abuive to me from day one. I knew in the first week that I had to get out of the job. What did he do? If you listened — no, it was never physical, but if you listened to the radio when I was on with don Imus, I was doing my I was funny and I had a quip for everything and I was playing along with the guys. I would come off air and I would cry on a daily basis. He was just abuive in that you would walk in a room and you were told not to look at him. If he addressed you, then you would address him. He could call me fat, stupid. If I made a mistake on his business report — I used to write his business report — he would call me out and say you’re done, I’m not dealing with you for the next week. Everyone dealt with that but I think he was more cruel to women. And I have since talked to women since this book came out that have worked with him and there is a consensus there. He has a family, I get that. I don’t hate anyone, but now is the time to stand up and it’s taken me 16 years to finally say that was wrong behavior. Yeah. And it wasn’t just weight. You write about so much in this book but there was one moment where you talk about the fact that Imus pointed a gun at one of his reporters’ heads and at one point named bullets after people that he worked for, including you. That’s all the story I need to tell you, right? He would take the bullets out of his loaded gun and name them after all of us. I will have corroboration on this and he would show us his loaded gun. There was one time where I was sitting at the news desk and he came out and pointed it right at the head of the reporter, the traffic reporter. It was like you were living this nightmare and everyone around you knew it but they didn’t do anything. That seems to be the way things are going in this country with R. Kelly and Michael Jackson, the presidency, everybody’s doing these things right in your face and no one can do anything about it. They can’t do it anymore. They can’t do it anymore. We’re on them now. While you were working for Imus, a friend be very nicely passed along your resume to Roger Ailes over at fox which is when you guys met each other. What happened with him? Because he, you know, he had to leave in disgrace because he was sexually harassing people. Did he do that to you? What did he do? I met him in the office first and he was very charming and very kind, saw me on Imus, made a comment like you’ve got that kind of naughtiness, you know, because I was the good time girl on Imus. But I didn’t think anything of it. And you have to realize, I came from a job where a man was like pointing guns at someone. I needed to get out. I would have taken any job. Then the second meeting we had he had requested I meet him at a hotel lobby. Who, Roger? Yes. I got a call from his secretary saying meet at the renaissance times square hotel. He met me there. We sat down. He told me to order a drink. I ordered a wine. He ordered wine. Then he took my hand and put it in his hand and said, have you been thinking about me? How do you see me in your life? I thought, this is a weird job and I just thought maybe he was attracted to me but I just said, well, I see you as a mentor, somebody I’d love to work for. You should have said a grandfather figure. I might not be here if I had said that but — so it was one of those moments where, look, my whole career I’ve dealt with some form of harassment, especially in broadcasting, unfortunately. It’s changing, there’s been an earthquake, thank goodness. Yes. And then he called me before I got the job and said, hey Janice Dean, how’s Imus? I said, oh, I can’t wait to get out of this job. He said, well, I really like you, I want you to come work for fox, but how are you at phone sex? And I laughed it off and I said, I’m terrible! Just really quickly, you have dealt with so many things, Ms. There’s a so much you have faced. You are the brightest person I’ve ever met in my entire life. I adore you. You are my sister and you have shown strength in the face of adversity and I want to thank you here today for that. Let me say this, and I love you — 30 seconds. Roger Ailes wasn’t all bad. I went to work for him. I’ve been there 15 years. I love this company. It’s a family to me. They did the right thing, but he wasn’t darth vader and there are a lot of Roger Ailes unfortunately in this business. You know what, they’re lucky people like you stayed because you helped folks like Meghan and myself. Thanks for being here.
This transcript has been automatically generated and may not be 100% accurate.