This is important because Smith had just signed a multi-year contract, and because he was just about the only FN host with the slightest shred of credibility. This made him immensely unpopular with most of his audience.
In the battle between opinion and fact, Fox News management chose opinion:
In the Trump era, and particularly in the last several weeks, the people working for the news division have seen their work undermined repeatedly by their opinion colleagues.
In his exit, Smith alluded to the tension between the opinion and news divisions, saying that the news division has always "endeavored to deliver" the news "while speaking truth to power, without fear or favor, in context and with perspective."
Smith signed off his newscast adding, "Even in our current polarized nation, it is my hope that the facts will win the day, that the truth will always matter, that journalism and journalists will thrive."
Good for him..