NPR Analyst Williams Says He Was Abruptly Fired

News analyst Juan Williams says NPR fired him abruptly for his remarks about Muslims on the Fox News Channel.

Williams told Bill O'Reilly on Monday that he gets nervous when he sees people in Muslim garb on an airplane.

NPR says it's terminating his contract over his comments.

Appearing briefly Thursday on Fox News, Williams explained he got a call Wednesday from Ellen Weiss, NPR's vice president for news.

He says he told Weiss he meant what he said on the O'Reilly show, and she told him he had made a bigoted statement and crossed a line.

Williams asked for the chance to meet with Weiss, but he said she responded that there was nothing he could say to change her mind.