Geraldo Rivera says he's leaving 'The Five' over 'growing tension' at the popular show

Veteran journalist Geraldo Rivera announced that he would be leaving "The Five" on Fox News and told a media outlet that "growing tension" behind the scenes added to his decision.

Rivera, who is one of the few left-wing voices on the show, tweeted about his planned departure from his official social media account.

"Morning, it’s official, I’m off @TheFive," the 79-year-old reporter tweeted.

"It’s been a great run and I appreciate having had the opportunity. Being odd man out isn’t always easy," he added. "For the time being, I’m still Correspondent at Large."

He said that his last scheduled appearances on the show would be Thursday and Friday next week.

Rivera told the Associated Press that his decision to leave the show related to "growing tension that goes beyond editorial differences."

He added that it was his personal decision to leave but that the network didn't "race" after him to stay on the show.

"It has been a rocky ride but it has also been an exhilarating adventure that spanned quite a few years," Geraldo concluded. "I hope it's not my last adventure."

Rivera also revealed that he had been suspended from the show several times, including one time when he vehemently criticized the Jan. 6 coverage by Tucker Carlson before he left Fox News. Rivera was scolded by co-host Greg Gutfeld over those comments.

Joy Behar opined on the departure of Rivera from his show on "The View" and said that she doubted he quit, adding that often when people are fired from these lucrative positions, they're told to say that they are intentionally leaving.

A Fox News representative didn't respond to a request from Entertainment Weekly for a comment on the situation.

"The Five" is among Fox News' most popular shows, especially after Tucker Carlson left his show and started broadcasting on Twitter apart from the cable news network.

Here's one of Rivera's recent appearances on Fox News:

Hannity spars with Geraldo Rivera over border crisisyoutu.be

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