Roger Ailes' comfort zone

Roger Ailes takes his safety seriously, says David Carr in The New York Times. The former Republican political strategist and head of Fox News has long been a hawk on defense and national security issues. But the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, made it all personal. “We had 3,000 dead people a couple miles from here. I knew that any communications company could be a target.” He feels even more threatened today, because of Fox’s success and the fury the conservative network creates on the Left. So now everywhere Ailes goes, he’s trailed by a phalanx of security guards; when traveling to and from work, he does so in a miniature convoy of two sport-utility vehicles. At his office, he usually keeps the blinds drawn; on his desk, a camera provides a view of what’s going on beyond his door. To distance himself from intruders, Ailes has purchased several properties surrounding his weekend home in New York’s Putnam County. Outside the house, a sign depicting a gun advises would-be intruders that they are under video surveillance. “I’ve got a bad leg, I’m a little overweight, so I can’t run fast,” Ailes says. “But I will fight.”

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