The former communications head will be a senior counselor to the president, working with adviser Jared Kushner.
Fox Corp. chief communications officer Hope Hicks is leaving the company to return to the Trump White House, The Hollywood Reporter has confirmed. Hicks will be a senior counselor to the president, working with adviser Jared Kushner, The New York Times, which first reported the news, added. She had previously served as White House Communications Director.
It was not immediately clear who would succeed her at Fox Corp, but a statement from a Fox spokesperson said that the company would name a new chief communications officer "in the near future."
“We are confirming the departure of EVP and Chief Communications Officer Hope Hicks and thank her for her contributions to Fox Corporation," the spokesperson said. "During her time here, she was instrumental in establishing the Fox Forward Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives, a program dedicated to helping veterans, youth and underserved communities. Additionally, she was a key executive team member at the inception of Fox Corporation and throughout this important first year. We are proud of the work Hope has done and wish her well in her future endeavors."
Hicks joined Fox as it sold off its entertainment assets to Disney, with the smaller company focusing on Fox News, Fox Sports and the Fox broadcast network. Hicks’ appointment was announced in late 2018, and she reported to Viet Dinh, Fox’s chief legal and policy officer. In her role at Fox, Hicks led communications strategy for the company and its CEO, Lachlan Murdoch.
Hicks' shift to Fox was but one example of a "revolving door" of sorts between Fox (mostly Fox News) and the White House. After Hicks left the White House, the administration hired former Fox News producer Bill Shine to lead its communication efforts. The administration had also hired former Fox News reporters Heather Nauert and Lea Gabrielle to serve in State Department posts, while former press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders joined Fox News as a contributor after leaving the administration.
Hicks has been a longtime press liaison for the Trump family and, in her pre-politics career, represented The Trump Organization, Kushner and Ivanka Trump. She joined Donald Trump's presidential campaign in 2015 and served as the primary press representative throughout the 2016 campaign. After he won, she joined the White House as a senior communications adviser, ultimately becoming communications director in September 2017. She left the White House in the spring of 2018.
Before joining the White House, Hicks worked as a PR rep at Hiltzik Strategies in New York.
