CBS CBS Corp

By Joe Flint 

Julie Chen, wife of former CBS Corp. Chairman and Chief Executive Leslie Moonves, who last week resigned in the midst of sexual-harassment allegations, will quit her role as a host on the network's daytime talk show "The Talk," people familiar with the matter said.

Ms. Chen hasn't been on "The Talk" since Mr. Moonves resigned under pressure from the CBS's board and controlling shareholder National Amusements Inc. She is expected to announce her departure from the show via video on Tuesday's program.

Since allegations of sexual harassment and assault by Mr. Moonves appeared in the New Yorker magazine, Ms. Chen has been publicly supportive of her husband; he has denied assaulting or forcing himself on any women. Mr. Moonves has also denied punishing women professionally who rebuffed his advances, which was also alleged in the New Yorker stories.

After the first New Yorker story was published in July, Ms. Chen tweeted that Mr. Moonves is a "good man" and a "kind, decent and moral human being." She said she stood behind his statements of innocence.

She also made a similar statement on "The Talk" in July.

News of Ms. Chen's pending departure was first reported by the New York Post and CNN.

Ms. Chen's exit from "The Talk" removes an awkward situation from a show that is hosted by four women who often talk about newsy topics, including the #MeToo movement. Inside CBS, there was also concern about whether keeping Ms. Chen on air every day would hinder its effort to move past the controversy surrounding Mr. Moonves' resignation, people close to the company said.

While Ms. Chen hasn't appeared on "The Talk" since Mr. Moonves resigned, she did appear last week on the CBS prime time reality show "Big Brother, " which she also hosts. On that show, she signed off as Julie Chen Moonves, which she had not done before.

No determination has been made about Ms. Chen's future as "Big Brother" host. A spokesman for the Endemol Shine Group production company that makes the program declined to comment. A person close to Ms. Chen said she expects to remain host of "Big Brother" for "years to come."

Write to Joe Flint at joe.flint@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

September 17, 2018 23:38 ET (03:38 GMT)

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