Newsmax has quietly added to its roster a pair of scandal-tinged local news stars—one connected to an embezzlement scheme, the other fired for her incendiary rhetoric.
and ordered to pay a $34 million restitution. He has so far paid back $5 million and surrendered his house.
Attorneys for de la Garza, who was never charged with a crime, argued she had no knowledge that Hajjar’s investments in her companies were embezzled. Furthermore, they claimed, the vast majority of the money de la Garza received had already been spent on her business ventures, outside of $81,000 and equity in her New York apartment. She finally reached a confidential settlement with Alden last year, returning the relatively tiny sum that remained.
The network never publicly acknowledged de la Garza’s hiring. Despite anchoring the midday broadcast, she is not currently under contract with Newsmax, suggesting she’s trying out with the network in a freelance capacity.Wendy Bell’s arrival. Touting her as a 28-year broadcast veteran with 21 Emmy wins, the network said her new show, titledand airing Saturdays and Sundays, would “examine the news of the day with a lively approach to national issues.
And though Newsmax trumpeted her experience as the “main anchor and most decorated reporter” at ABC’s Pittsburgh affiliate WTAE, and boasted of her success as “the lone conservative female voice” on southwestern Pennsylvania radio airwaves, the network made no mention of how or why she lost either of those gigs.