Cathy Areu is an American journalist, author, and former educator who worked at
Fox News
The Fox News Channel, abbreviated FNC, commonly known as Fox News, and stylized in all caps, is an American multinational conservative cable news television channel based in New York City. It is owned by Fox News Media, which itself is owne ...
in the role of the "Liberal Sherpa".
Early life and education
Areu obtained her
Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...
in English literature from
Florida State University
Florida State University (FSU) is a public research university in Tallahassee, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida. Founded in 1851, it is located on the oldest continuous site of higher education in the st ...
in 1992, and a
master's degree
A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice. in English education from
Nova Southeastern University
Nova Southeastern University (NSU or, informally, Nova) is a private nonprofit research university with its main campus in Davie, Florida. The university consists of 14 total colleges, centers, and schools offering over 150 programs of study. ...
, also in Florida. She became a tenured teacher in Florida and gained certification as a teacher in New Jersey.
Career
Overview
From 2001 to 2012, Areu conducted interviews for ''
The Washington Post
''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...
s "First Person Singular" column, including with
Laura Bush
Laura Lane Welch Bush (''née'' Welch; born November 4, 1946) is an American teacher, librarian, memoirist and author who was First Lady of the United States from 2001 to 2009. Bush previously served as First Lady of Texas from 1995 to 2000. ...
,
Al Franken
Alan Stuart Franken (born May 21, 1951) is an American comedian, politician, media personality, and author who served as a United States senator from Minnesota from 2009 to 2018. He gained fame as a writer and performer on the television comed ...
,
Alberto Gonzales
Alberto R. Gonzales (born August 4, 1955) is an American lawyer who served as the 80th United States Attorney General, appointed in February 2005 by President George W. Bush, becoming the highest-ranking Hispanic American in executive governme ...
,
Nancy Pelosi
Nancy Patricia Pelosi (; ; born March 26, 1940) is an American politician who has served as Speaker of the United States House of Representatives since 2019 and previously from 2007 to 2011. She has represented in the United States House of ...
and
Al Sharpton
Alfred Charles Sharpton Jr. (born October 3, 1954) is an American civil rights activist, Baptist minister, talk show host and politician. Sharpton is the founder of the National Action Network. In 2004, he was a candidate for the Democratic ...
.
She contributed to ''Latina Style'' in 2001; she also contributed to ''People'' magazine and ''USA Weekend''. In 2001 she founded ''Catalina'', a magazine aimed at Hispanic women.
[ Her book, ''Latino Wisdom'', a collection of stories about America's best-known Hispanic figures, was published by Barricade Books in 2006.
Areu appeared on ]Fox News
The Fox News Channel, abbreviated FNC, commonly known as Fox News, and stylized in all caps, is an American multinational conservative cable news television channel based in New York City. It is owned by Fox News Media, which itself is owne ...
's ''Tucker Carlson Tonight
''Tucker Carlson Tonight'' is an American talk show and current affairs program hosted by conservative commentator Tucker Carlson on the television network Fox News. The show premiered in November 2016 and includes political commentary, monolog ...
'' in a recurring 2018 segment as the "Liberal Sherpa", as well as on ''The O'Reilly Factor
''The O'Reilly Factor'' (originally titled ''The O'Reilly Report'' and also known as ''The Factor'') is an American cable television news and talk show. ''The O'Reilly Factor'' first aired in the United States on Fox News Channel on October 7 ...
'', and ''The Sean Hannity Show
''The Sean Hannity Show'' is a conservative talk radio show hosted by Sean Hannity. The program is broadcast live every weekday, from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. ET. The show is produced in the New York City studios of radio station WOR and is sometimes ...
''. She has also appeared on HLN's '' Prime News'' and ''Showbiz Tonight
''Showbiz Tonight'' is a defunct American entertainment news program that aired from February 20, 2005, until February 6, 2014, on HLN. ''Showbiz Tonight'' was hosted by A. J. Hammer at CNN New York at the time of its cancellation. The show re ...
''; on CNN
CNN (Cable News Network) is a multinational cable news channel headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable news channel, and presently owned by ...
's '' AC360'' and '' Campbell Brown''; and on MSNBC
MSNBC (originally the Microsoft National Broadcasting Company) is an American news-based pay television cable channel. It is owned by NBCUniversala subsidiary of Comcast. Headquartered in New York City, it provides news coverage and political ...
's '' The Daily Rundown''.
Lawsuit
In July 2020, Areu and another woman filed a lawsuit against Fox News and some of its prominent contributors. The suit states that Areu was sexually harassed at Fox News, including by Sean Hannity
Sean Patrick Hannity (born December 30, 1961) is an American talk show host, conservative political commentator, and author. He is the host of ''The Sean Hannity Show'', a nationally syndicated talk radio show, and has also hosted a commentar ...
, Tucker Carlson
Tucker Swanson McNear Carlson (born May 16, 1969) is an American television host, conservative political commentator and writer who has hosted the nightly political talk show ''Tucker Carlson Tonight'' on Fox News since 2016.
Carlson began h ...
, and Howard Kurtz
Howard Alan Kurtz (; born August 1, 1953) is an American journalist and author best known for his coverage of the media.
Kurtz is the host of Fox News's ''Media Buzz'' program, the successor to ''Fox News Watch''. He is the former media writer fo ...
. The organization Times Up said in September 2020 that it was "providing PR support" to Areu. On November 15, 2021, the case was dismissed. The court provided an opportunity to file an amended suit, but Areu never did. The case was dismissed in November 2021 with prejudice
Prejudice can be an affective feeling towards a person based on their perceived group membership. The word is often used to refer to a preconceived (usually unfavourable) evaluation or classification of another person based on that person's per ...
.
Personal life
Areu has two daughters, born circa 2009 and 2011.
Areu was arrested in December 2022 and charged with kidnapping, exploitation of the elderly and scheming to defraud her elderly mother. Prosecutors in Miami-Dade County
Miami-Dade County is a county located in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of Florida. The county had a population of 2,701,767 as of the 2020 census, making it the most populous county in Florida and the seventh-most populous county in ...
allege Areu stole at least $224,000 in the matter.
Publications
* ''Latino Wisdom: Celebrity Stories of Hope, Inspiration, and Success to Recharge Your Mind, Body, and Soul''. Fort Lee, N.J.: Barricade Books (2006)
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Areu, Cathy
Living people
21st-century American journalists
21st-century American women writers
American people of Cuban descent
American political commentators
American political journalists
American publishers (people)
American women journalists
The Washington Post people
Florida State University alumni
Journalists from Florida
Nova Southeastern University alumni
Writers from Florida
Year of birth missing (living people)