Sources have reported that a recently hired CBS News producer was fired after being accused of whistleblowing on a news story. The producer had started working on CBS This Morning in October, after leaving her position as a producer for ABC’s Good Morning America. According to the reports, executives at ABC informed CBS that the producer had leaked a hot mic video, which allegedly showed that ABC had killed a story on now-deceased, alleged sex-trafficker Jeffrey Epstein. It reportedly showed an ABC anchor complaining that her superiors killed a story that would have exposed Epstein’s actions three years ago.
The video was later published by the right-wing activist group Project Veritas. Allegedly, a news reporter also posted a story about the leak, and the CBS producer was fired less than 24 hours later. The producer allegedly denies the charge and added that she was wrongfully terminated and was not given the opportunity to defend herself.
Denying the Accusation
The female producer claimed that although she had clipped the video, she did not look at it afterwards, and stated the leaker was still inside the company. She had only been working at CBS four days before she was terminated. The accused producer claimed that she never communicated with Project Veritas or showed the clip to anyone and had only saved the video to ABC’s internal system after making the clip. She added that she only found out about the leak when she was watching the feed at her office.
The producer claimed that she did not tell her manager about clipping the story, and that she had no knowledge as to who leaked the tape and had never heard of Project Veritas. Claiming that she did not know that she had done something wrong, she also said that she was not given the opportunity to defend herself, which was devastating and embarrassing.
About the Video
The news anchor interviewed in the hot mic video was allegedly filmed stating that Buckingham Palace had threatened ABC because they discovered Prince Andrew was part of the Epstein story. Once the video was released by Project Veritas’ founder, the anchor attributed these comments to her feelings of frustration. In a November 5 statement, she explained that the piece did not air because there was not enough corroborating evidence for ABC to broadcast it.
ABC’s Response
Both ABC and CBS have not admitted any wrongdoing or apologized. ABC stated that they were still investigating the Epstein story, and were developing a six-part podcast and two-hour documentary to be shown next year. They also downplayed the video’s significance, and echoed the anchor’s comments that the story did not meet their standards.
Philadelphia Whistleblower Lawyers at The Gold Law Firm P.C. Protect Employees Facing Retaliation
There are laws in place to protect whistleblowers, and we can help if you are facing retaliation from whistleblowing. For a free case evaluation, contact a Philadelphia whistleblower lawyer at The Gold Law Firm P.C. by calling 215-569-1999 or complete our online form. Located in Philadelphia and Pennsauken, New Jersey, we help clients throughout Wilkes-Barre, Scranton, and Northeast Philadelphia, Bucks County, Chester County, Delaware County, Montgomery County, and South Jersey.
