Former Trump administration White House Communications Director Hope Hicks didn’t have much trouble finding a new job in the Trump economy. She departed from her job in the Trump administration at the end of March, and now will be continuing a similar line of work over at Fox News. Disney is buying most of 21st Century Fox, which the exception of assets like Fox News and Fox Sports. Those assets unaffected by the Disney acquisition will be owned under the “FOX” umbrella, where Hicks will lead the PR team.
Hope Hicks' next act is at FOX: She's joining the spun-off company as EVP and chief communications officer.
Context: Disney is buying most of 21st Century Fox. The remaining Fox assets, like Fox News, Fox Sports and the broadcast network, will become FOX, and Hicks will run PR.
— Brian Stelter (@brianstelter) October 8, 2018
Current members of the Trump administration lauded the decision, including Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders.
FOX won’t find anyone smarter or more talented than Hope Hicks. So happy for my friend. They are beyond lucky to have you and the East Coast misses you already. https://t.co/mUQUlip5oc
— Sarah Sanders (@PressSec) October 8, 2018
Hicks played more of a “behind the scenes” role in the Trump administration – as evidenced by the fact that most reading this don’t even know what her voice sounds like. It’s not confirmed why she left the Trump administration, so any potential motive is simple speculation. Some have speculated it could’ve been due to the Rob Porter scandal (the man she previously dated who was alleged to have abused his ex-wife), while the New York Times’ Maggie Haberman reported that “Ms. Hicks had been considering leaving for several months. She told colleagues that she had accomplished what she felt she could with a job that made her one of the most powerful people in Washington, and that there would never be a perfect moment to leave, according to White House aides.”
While we don’t know why she left, she was a favorite of Trump, which likely contributed to FOX welcoming her in with open arms.
As for more on Hick’s background and work in the Trump administration, according to CNBC:
- Hicks was one of the youngest and highest paid White House staffers in 2017, earning $179,700 at age 29.
- She has close ties to the Trump family, having worked for Hiltzik Strategies in 2012, which was a PR firm that previously represented Ivanka Trump’s luxury fashion lines.
- She previously worked as a model.
- While she was not previously politically active, her father Paul Hicks once worked as chief of staff to GOP Rep. Stewart McKinney.
- She was known as the “Trump whisperer,” with some insiders saying that Hicks was one of the few people who understood Trump’s moods, and that because of that, he “relied on her more than anyone else.”
- Like everyone else in the Trump White House, a “tell-all” memoir could be in the works – but it wouldn’t be a hit piece like Omarosa’s bargain-bin book.
Think she’ll be staying around FOX longer than the Trump administration?
