Ingraham announces break from her show amid backlash over Parkland student

Fox News host Laura Ingraham is taking vacation time as advertisers flee her show, “The Ingraham Angle,” over a feud with a high school student who advocates for gun control.

Ingraham on her show Friday night described the vacation as a pre-planned break with her children for the Easter holiday.

“A blessed Good Friday and Passover to all of you; I’ll be off next week for Easter break with my kids,” she said. “Fear not. We’ve got a great lineup of guest hosts to fill in for me.”

Ingraham, who hosts one of Fox News’s highest-rated talk shows, leaves in the midst of controversy and boycotts.

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More than a dozen companies have stopped advertising on Ingraham’s show in the days since the Fox News host mocked Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School student David Hogg for being rejected from colleges.

Hogg is both a survivor of the Parkland, Fla., school shooting that took place in February and a national gun control advocate. He helped organize the “March for Our Lives” rally in Washington, D.C., which brought hundreds of thousands to the Capitol to pressure Congress to change laws in favor of tighter restrictions on guns.

Ingraham apologized on Thursday “for any upset or hurt my tweet caused him or any of the brave victims of Parkland.” She also praised Hogg’s “4.2 GPA,” which she had previously mocked.

She noted she was the first to feature Hogg on the air after the shooting that left 17 dead, praising him at the time for his “poise” and for speaking so well and informatively. She also invited Hogg back on the program to have “a productive discussion.”

Hogg rejected her apology, however, calling it “an effort just to save your advertisers.” He had called for his Twitter followers to contact her top advertisers. He went on to accelerate the boycott effort by listing 100 advertisers for the show by retweeting a list provided by Media Matters.

Since Wednesday night, at least 14 advertisers have stopped advertising on the program, including Liberty Mutual, Office Depot, Jenny Craig, Atlantis Paradise Island, Stitch Fix, Johnson & Johnson, Hulu, Nestle, Expedia, Wayfair, Trip Advisor, Ruby Tuesday, Nutrish, and Global investment group Principal.

The only blue-chip company to advertise on Ingraham’s show Friday night was IBM, according to Variety.

In response to Ingraham’s announced vacation, Hogg tweeted: “Have some healthy reflections this Holy Week.”

Have some healthy reflections this Holy Week. https://t.co/bjSLmj3gyH

— David Hogg (@davidhogg111) March 31, 2018

“The Ingraham Angle,” which launched five months ago, finished fourth in the cable news ratings race in total viewers in February, averaging more than 2.6 million viewers, according to Nielsen Media Research.

Only “Hannity,” and “Tucker Carlson Tonight” on Fox and “The Rachel Maddow Show” on MSNBC delivered more viewers last month.

The Hill has reached out to Fox News for comment.

— Updated 7:17 a.m.