A judge has dismissed a claim of retaliation included in a harassment lawsuit filed by three women — Katherine Brooks Harris, Sydney McNeal, and Yuqing (Chelsea) Wei — against former CBS and PBS news anchor Charlie Rose.
After the publication of a Washington Post story detailing multiple accusations of sexual misconduct, PBS cancelled Rose’s talk show “Charlie Rose” and CBS fired him. McNeal and Harris were let go along with the rest of the “Charlie Rose” staff , and Wei, a CBS employee, said she was reassigned to an entry-level position after Rose was fired and eventually left the network on medical leave. The women state that Rose called them names like “f–ing idiot” and “f–king kindergartener” prior to the loss of their jobs.
But in a decision issued Thursday in New York, Judge Doris Ling-Cohan determined that Rose’s comments, as well as the plaintiffs’ subsequent job losses. did not amount to retaliation under New York City’s human rights law.
“Inasmuch as CBS fired Rose the day after the article was published, McNeal and Harris cannot show that they were fired for any reason, other than that there was no longer any work for them,” Ling-Cohan wrote in Thursday’s decision. “Moreover, plaintiffs cited no case law in which yelling or cursing of the nature alleged here, constitutes retaliation.”
The remaining claims of the plaintiffs’ lawsuit against Rose, which was first filed in New York Supreme Court last year, will still stand as the case goes to discovery. In the initial lawsuit, plaintiffs accused Rose of subjecting the three women to “repeated, ongoing, and unlawful physical and verbal harassment,” which included sexual touching, sexual comments, and sexual advances.
Pamela Chelin contributed to this report.
7 Times Matt Lauer Came Under Fire, From Sexual Harassment Accusations to Ann Curry Ousting (Photos)
Matt Lauer was terminated by NBC News on Wednesday after the company received a complaint of sexual harassment against him. But that's not the first time the longtime "Today" host found himself in hot water.
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Rumors of extramarital affairs dogged Lauer during his tenure on "Today," with tabloid reports linking him to other members of the show, including Natalie Morales. In 2010, NBC News finally responded to the allegations, calling them "completely inaccurate and unfounded" and "reckless and harmful to the Lauer family."
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Ann Curry was ousted from "Today" in 2012 as the show was losing ground to ABC's "Good Morning America," and after she issued a tearful on-air goodbye Lauer was widely viewed as the reason for her departure. New York Magazine later reported that the two had a tense off-camera relationship, and though Curry took the fall, Lauer was more to blame for the show's declining viewership.
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In 2012, Lauer was criticized for asking Anne Hathaway about an upskirt photo taken at the premiere of "Les Miserables" and attempting to make a joke of the situation by saying he'd "seen a lot of you lately." Hathaway was praised for how she handled the situation, gently shutting down the line of questioning by saying it was unfortunate that the culture "commodifies sexuality of unwilling participants."
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In 2006, Lauer's wife Annette Roque filed for divorce, alleging that she suffered "cruel and inhumane" treatment at the hands of her controlling husband. The two eventually reconciled and Roque, who was pregnant at the time, withdrew the paperwork, but the documents were obtained and published by the National Enquirer in 2014.
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Lauer's former co-anchor Katie Couric joked about his behavior in a 2012 interview with Andy Cohen. "He pinches me on the ass a lot," she said, calling it Lauer's most annoying habit. Video of the interview, which was handled jokingly at the time, was recirculated following his termination for a sexual misconduct allegation.
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Lauer moderated a pair of NBC News town halls during the 2016 presidential election, which were widely slammed for the way he questioned the two candidates. Lauer repeatedly asked Hillary Clinton about her email server and rushed past other, more concrete policy issues. Meanwhile, he was perceived to have gone much softer on Donald Trump, failing to press the then-nominee on repeated falsehoods.
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Lauer was finally axed by NBC News and removed from "Today" in 2017, after the company received a "detailed complaint" from a colleague accusing him of inappropriate sexual behavior.
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Morning show host was axed following a sexual misconduct allegation by an NBC News colleague
Matt Lauer was terminated by NBC News on Wednesday after the company received a complaint of sexual harassment against him. But that's not the first time the longtime "Today" host found himself in hot water.