Shepard Smith, Fox News Anchor, Nonchalantly Reveals He’s Gay

Two weeks ago, while speaking at the University of Mississippi’s Meek School of Journalism, Shepard Smith announced that he was gay without much fanfare. Because of his nonchalant way of saying so, the announcement has gotten very little attention until recently.

From the outset of his speech, he told an anecdote about gay friends asking why he still goes to football games and puts on a masculine mask. Smith says its not a mask, he just loves football and the University of Mississippi. He also mentioned that his partner was in the audience, along with his father and step-mother.

He also spoke about a time someone asked him about his former boss and accused serial sexual harasser, Roger Ailes.

“Someone asked me if Roger Ailes had been abusive to me, and I said, ‘No. He was always good to me,’ and that was the truth. And when I told the truth, I guess it was considered that I outed myself. I didn’t even think about it, because I didn’t think I was in,” Smith said during his speech.

When speaking about the importance of not stereotyping subjects in the news, especially for journalists, he also mentioned that he, as a gay man, is not a stereotype.

“On a Saturday, I don’t [care] about brunch. I respect you and your brunch. You should enjoy the brunch… I’ll be at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. Because that’s where I need to be and later I need to watch ESPN for the rest of the day…But it’s harder when you like boys to find other people to roll like this. Until you put them on a private jet and bring them [to Oxford].”

Smith says that he has been “living [his] truth” for about eight years but has never really seen it as something he ever needed to iron out with the public. But he did feel that way before he admitted it to himself.

“Once I figured it all out, I wasn’t hiding anything. I was always as true to me as I knew how to be. If I was fibbing to you, it’s because I was fibbing to me. And I didn’t realize I was fibbing to you because I didn’t know I was fibbing to me. And I know that sounds like such a load of s–t, but it really is my truth. And I don’t have to fib about anything ever again as long as I live and that really makes everything so much easier.”

Smith also explained that his sexuality, living in Greenwich Village in New York City, never was really an issue and that he never had to stand “in front of anyone and talk about ‘the gay.’

Smith is currently the managing editor of Fox News’ Breaking News Division and the host of Shepard Smith Reporting.

Watch Smith’s entire speech below.