TOP OF THE MORNING

It's Thursday, Oct. 12, 2017. Welcome to Fox News First, your first stop for today's news. To get your early morning news emailed directly to your inbox, click here.

Here's your Fox News First 5 - the first five things you need to know today:

The Harvey Weinstein sex scandal exposes a Tinseltown wall of silence, sends Hollywood into chaos

NBC is under fire for declining to televise a Weinstein exposé

'Hannity' Exclusive: President Trump says the NFL should have suspended quarterback Colin Kaepernick for kneeling during the national anthem

The Obama presidential library will not keep hard copies of the former president's documents onsite, baffling historians

Conservative students at UC Berkeley face threats of violence for their views

Let's take a closer look at these stories ...

THE LEAD STORY: Hollywood is in chaos, and all because of one man: Harvey Weinstein. Multiple allegations of rape, sexual harassment and trading sex for movie roles have forced one of the most powerful men in show business out of his company and begging for help and forgiveness ... But Weinstein’s dramatic fall has implications that extend much further than his business and personal relationships and so far show no signs of abating. From the women he allegedly abused, to the associates who allegedly knew about his behavior all along but stayed silent, to the A-list actors and actresses who depend on him for their career-making roles, many of the biggest Tinseltown titans are wondering what their lives — and show business itself — will look like in a post-Weinstein town.

NBC BIAS EXPOSED? Critics are wondering why NBC passed on running a Harvey Weinstein sex harassment exposé that was ultimately published by the New Yorker. The answer may lie in NBC's Hollywood screenwriter news president, Noah Oppenheim... Until a few days ago, Weinstein was one of the most powerful and influential players in Hollywood. Oppenheim is still an active screenwriter who wrote Jackie, a 2016 film starring Natalie Portman, and has been attached to multiple other projects. He has told industry colleagues that he’s likely to one day return to Hollywood full time. Former MSNBC host Ronan Farrow, who reportedly worked on his Weinstein story for a year, had offered the scoop to NBC News months ago. However, the Oppenheim-run news organization refused to air the story, saying it did not meet their journalistic standards. Farrow then took his 7,718-word bombshell to the New Yorker.

'HANNITY' EXCLUSIVE WITH TRUMP: President Donald Trump suggested that the NFL could have avoided the controversy over national anthem protests if it had suspended quarterback Colin Kaepernick for kneeling during the playing of "The Star-Spangled Banner" ... "The NFL should have suspended him for one game and he would have never done it again," Trump told Fox News' Sean Hannity during an interview in Harrisburg, Pa.

Kaepernick began kneeling during the national anthem last season as part of a protest against police brutality while a member of the San Francisco 49ers. Kaepernick has since become a free agent and has been unable to get a job with another NFL team. Meanwhile, to the chagrin of NFL executives and fans who don't like to mix sports and politics, the sight of players kneeling during the national anthem has become the norm.

Judge Andrew Napolitano: Is taking a knee protected speech?

OBAMA’S PAPERLESS LIBRARY: The Obama Foundation is taking an unconventional approach to the presidential center and library planned in Chicago. It is opting to host a digital archives of President Barack Obama's records, but will not keep his hard-copy manuscripts and letters and other documents onsite ... That means no thumbing through the ex-president's correspondence on the health care fight or first drafts of his State of the Union speeches. The decision has historians scratching their heads. The Chicago Tribune reports that while Obama's physical records are currently in a private facility in Illinois, they will likely be shipped to locations in and around Washington, D.C.

CONSERVATIVES UNWELCOME AT UC BERKELEY?: The birthplace of the free speech movement in the 1960s apparently isn't very friendly to today's conservative students ... Following a slew of high-profile, violent protests against conservative speakers on campus, students say that life at UC Berkeley has become more difficult for anyone whose politics lean toward the right.

ABOUT LAST NIGHT

'FAKE' RUSSIA COLLUSION: "It wasn't Russia, it was a bad candidate. It was a candidate that didn't go to Wisconsin and Michigan like they should have." – President Trump, on "Hannity," addressing Democrats' insistence, almost one year later, that Russia somehow titled the 2016 presidential election in his favor. WATCH

HYPOCRISY, HOLLYWOOD-STYLE: "That's progressive values in Hollywood in a nutshell. Oh, I'm totally committed for more roles for fierce, strong, independent women, and I'll consider giving one to you if you come up to my room and sexually service me." – Author and radio host Mark Steyn, on "Tucker Carlson Tonight," skewering Hollywood liberal elites for claiming to stand up for empowering women, while ignoring Harvey Weinstein's alleged sexual harassment for years. WATCH

MINDING YOUR BUSINESS

House Ways and Means Committee Chair Kevin Brady continues push for state and local tax elimination.

GE stock hits 4-year low as analysts debate possibility of dividend cut.

NAFTA benefits Canada more than the U.S., agriculture secretary says.

J.P. Morgan's loan arm may see hurricane impact.

NEW IN FOX NEWS OPINION

Repeal the Jones Act to speed Puerto Rico recovery.

Michelle Obama's condescending and disgracefully out of touch advice to job-seeking women.

The conservative case to keep the Iran deal.

Shouldn't pro-life students have the same free speech rights as millionaire athletes?

HOLLYWOOD SQUARED

Kid Rock vs. Eminem: Will music stars compete for Senate seat?

Alec Baldwin has drink-throwing meltdown on NYC street.

OBJECTified preview: Tyler Perry opens up on his faith.

Andy Cohen to host CNN's New Year's Eve with Anderson Cooper, replacing Kathy Griffin.

DID YOU HEAR ABOUT THIS?

Star of 'racist' Dove ad speaks out.

Zuckerberg apologizes for VR tour of hurricane-ravaged Puerto Rico.

Volcanoes kill about 540 people a year, scientists say.

'Surprise period pants' is the worst Halloween costume idea.

STAY TUNED

On Fox News:

Fox & Friends, 6 a.m. ET: Country singer and reality TV star Jessie James Decker discusses her recent announcement of her pregnancy, the latest season of her A&E show and more.

Hannity, 9 p.m. ET: Jesus Campos, the security guard shot by Las Vegas gunman Stephen Paddock before the Oct. 1 massacre, speaks out in an exclusive interview.

On Fox Business:

Mornings with Maria, 6 a.m. ET: Linda McMahon, administrator of the Small Business Administration, takes on the implications of tax reform for small businesses.

Varney & Co., 9 a.m. ET: UFC President Dana White discusses efforts to help Las Vegas massacre victims and more.

Cavuto: Coast to Coast, Noon ET: Sen. Rand Paul talks the Iran nuke deal and tax reform.

The Intelligence Report, 2 p.m. ET: Counselor to President Trump Kellyanne Conway takes on the hot topics facing the White House today

Countdown to the Closing Bell, 3 p.m. ET: Brendan Boyle, House Budget Committee, discusses the latest in the quest for a budget plan.

Risk & Reward, 5 p.m. ET: Lt. Gen. Thomas McInerney sizes up the implications of Trump decertifying the Iran deal.

Making Money with Charles Payne, 6 p.m. ET: Rep. Mark Walker discusses disaster relief funding challenges.

Lou Dobbs Tonight, 7 p.m. ET: Rep. Ron DeSantis, House Committee on Foreign Affairs, takes on the latest threat from North Korea

On Fox News Radio:

The Brian Kilmeade Show, 9 a.m. ET to 12 noon ET: Columnist Marc Thiessen dissects President Trump's anticipated decertification of the Iran nuke deal; Kevin Hassett, chair of the Council of Economic Advisers, takes us inside Trump's tax reform plan; columnist Andrew McCarthy discusses attempts by the Justice Department and FBI to hide info about the Trump dossier.

#OnThisDay

2000: A suicide bomb attack on the destroyer USS Cole in Yemen kills 17 sailors.

1997: Singer John Denver is killed in a plane crash in Monterey Bay, Calif.

1957: Dr. Seuss' "How the Grinch Stole Christmas!" is first published by Random House.

1792: The first recorded U.S. celebration of Columbus Day is held to mark the tricentennial of Christopher Columbus' landing.

Thank you for joining us on Fox News First! Enjoy your Thursday and we'll see you in your inbox first thing Friday morning.