A conservative-leaning media company created with the merger of CRTV LLC and Glenn Beck-founded TheBlaze, today led by CEO Tyler Cardon and President Gaston Mooney, has failed in a bid to dismiss a complaint filed in February by a former host who alleges her on-air companion made disparaging, ongoing misogynistic comments during their show.
Journalist, YouTube star and political commentator Sydney Watson late last week (8/3) scored a win in the U.S. District Court for the Northern Division of Texas’ Dallas Division, after the judge presiding in her case against Blaze Media declined to grant the company’s Motion to Dismiss her claim.
The big reason U.S. District Judge Jane Boyle declined to grant the dismissal? A federal statute prevents Blaze Media from compelling arbitration, she ruled.
And, it once again puts a dark cloud over Watson’s former co-host on You Are Here, Elijah Schaffer.
Watson and Schaffer were teamed to host the program in September 2021, four months after Watson signed a Talent Services Agreement with Blaze Media. While the show’s popularity took off, the personal off-air relationship between Watson and Schaffer — like many broadcast media duos placed together by management — wasn’t so great. Then, Watson alleges, “Schaffer’s persona on the show became increasingly aggressive and soon began to veer into outright misogyny.”
In addition, Schaffer is accused of selecting multiple YAH guests whom Watson viewed as “grossly misogynistic.” One of these guests shouted at Watson during the show for reading a question from a viewer; Schaffer continued to book similar guests without consulting Watson.
During this time, Watson felt “she was . . . the designated punching bag for the sexist guests and [Schaffer]” and that Schaffer “endlessly reference[d] sex” on the show. Furthermore, Schaffer’s behavior, in Watson’s view, rallied the program’s audience into routinely harassing Watson with “grossly sexist” and “anti-Jewish” comments.
By January 2022, Watson began providing Blaze Media with a weekly report to management of Schaffer’s alleged actions.
And, according to Watson’s attorneys, she experienced “significant vertigo” and had to sit out of shows because of the stress caused by Schaffer’s conduct.
This culminated in a March 2022 communiqué in which Watson told Schaffer and Mooney, among others at Blaze Media, that this behavior was was “making it impossible for her to do her job.” Management “promised” to address Watson’s issues.
Yet, on April 7, 2022, Schaffer tweeted that he hoped Watson would “sleep with” a certain conservative media personality. This led Watson to notify Blaze Media that she could not continue and stopped participating in the show, which initially went on hiatus in May 2022.
Even after that occurred, Watson claimed she endured harassment from Schaffer, who claimed that she tried to convince his wife to divorce him.
As such, Watson alleges Blaze either “constructively terminated” her in Spring 2022 or alternatively actively terminated her in or about July 2022 after she complained, through counsel, about Schaffer’s conduct. This led to Blaze’s attempt to compel arbitration, which failed.
Key to the decision is Watson’s claim that The Ending Forced Arbitration of
Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act of 2021 prevents Blaze Media from compelling arbitration because her case relates to a sexual harassment dispute.
Blaze argued that, because Watson’s claims accrued before the EFAA was enacted, the Act does not apply, and that Watson lacks statutory standing to bring her sexual harassment claims.
“Neither argument is persuasive,” Judge Boyle declared.
Blaze Media now has 14 days from August 3, 2023 to respond to Watson’s complaint.
