Fired WOOD-TV News Managers Get Court Date with Nexstar

By Paul Greeley
817-578-6324, Paul@NewsBlues.com

A pair of newsroom leaders who were fired by Nexstar Media Group several years ago are likely to have their definitive moment in court later this year, absent a settlement in the case, as reported by The Desk.

In mid-April, the federal judge overseeing two separate but related defamation and wrongful termination cases filed by former WOOD-TV (Channel 8, NBC) News Director Stanton Tang and his direct report, Assistant News Director Amy Fox, scheduled a fresh settlement conference for June and a final pre-trial hearing for July, the last steps before the lawsuit is brought before a jury.

Fox and Tang were fired a few weeks after writing and circulating a newsroom-wide memo that urged journalists at the Michigan television station to pull back on their reporting of Pride Month events there.

The memo reminded reporters and producers at the station that some viewers of WOOD-TV’s newscasts were politically conservative, and said stories about gay issues were likely to upset its audience.

“We need to recognize that some stories related to LGBTQ issues are going to be controversial and polarizing in our community,” Fox wrote in the memo, which was orchestrated by Tang. “While you personally may not agree with a certain position, people are entitled to their opinions, and they are our viewers.”

The memo prompted a revolt among the station’s journalists, who vowed not to follow the directive.

After The Desk published a report on the memo, Nexstar opened an internal investigation and ultimately determined that Fox and Tang had violated the company’s editorial and business policies. The news directors were fired, as were two other employees suspected of leaking the memo to reporters.

Fox and Tang sued about a year later, arguing that their terminations were without merit because they followed Nexstar’s policies requiring fairness and accuracy in news reporting. They also said statements made by Nexstar‘s Chief Communications Officer Gary Weitman to CNN reporter Liam Reilly and other journalists covering the memo were defamatory.

Nexstar disputes the allegations, and asked the court to toss out the case.

In March, a federal judge refused to dismiss the lawsuit, saying there were enough allegations and preliminary evidence to indicate that the broadcaster may have violated federal and state labor laws, including one that protect former employees from having their disciplinary records disclosed to uninvolved parties.

Last year, attorneys representing all sides engaged in a court-ordered settlement conference that was intended to resolve the case without a jury trial. The settlement conference ended in December without an agreement, paving the way for the case to proceed.

A second settlement conference is scheduled for June 4, with a final pre-trial conference hearing scheduled for July 20, according to court records reviewed by The Desk.

The jury trial is likely to be scheduled for this fall.

CLICK HERE to read the complete article by The Desk.

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