Media Interviews Washington Post journalist fired for criticizing colleague’s sexist tweet case forwarded to US government 10/06/2022 12:00

Remember the case of the journalist fired from the Washington Post

The union’s complaint was anticipated by The Daily Beast website, which had access to the process, which opened on September 28.

In the complaint, WBNG alleges that the Washington Post fired the journalist for speaking out against the newspaper’s social media policies on Twitter.

The indictment states that “The Washington Post dismissed Felicia Sönmez for her repeated statements about working conditions and her failure and refusal to apply the company’s social media policy fairly to employees,” the statements that make up the protected activity. [Nacional de Relações Trabalhistas]”.

The lawsuit began when political reporter David Wiegel retweeted a sexist message. In June, she reposted the message: “Every girl is bisexual. You just need to find out if it’s polar or sexual.”

Wiegel was immediately criticized by his colleague Felicia Somnez and subsequently suspended.

But instead of complaining to management or through internal channels, she opted for Twitter, triggering an intense exchange of statements that eventually led to her own dismissal for “disobedience, defamation of colleagues online, and violating the Post’s standards for colleague solidarity and inclusion in society.” . According to the letter of termination published by the American press.

Also Read | The Washington Post reporter’s sexist tweet turned into a crisis, leading to the resignation of his complaining colleague

According to the Daily Beast, the story turned into an international crisis, leading to an overhaul of the newspaper’s policy regarding social media posts.

The Washington Post, searched by the site, declined to comment on the new complaint filed by the journalist.

“All Washington Post employees associated with the union have the right to appeal the company’s decision to discipline or fire them, speak about their working conditions and policies, and have a reasonable expectation that the newspaper will comply with their employment contract in accordance with federal labor law,” WBNG said in a statement. in the statement.

After filing the complaint at the federal level, the process now moves into an investigation phase to determine its continuation.

If it continues, the dispute may go to court and end with corrective action for the newspaper – such as rehiring Sönmez or another court-approved action.

“Post leadership must do more to support traumatized employees, not punish them. It must act to fulfill its rhetoric about diversity and inclusion.”

“Employees who raise concerns about these issues should not fear being fired or that their careers are in such jeopardy.”

I am grateful @WBNG32035 For escalating this complaint to the National Labor Relations Board to ensure that the Washington Post respects the federally protected right of speech of its employees and draws attention to working conditions at the company. My full disclosure: https://t.co/TDM0EJHswT pic.twitter.com/Rly0QNZpXR

— Felicia Sonmez (@feliciasonmez) 29 September 2022

The June case is not the first case Sönmez has filed against the newspaper.

In 2021, she was banned by Washington Post editors from reporting on sexual assault for being a victim of this type of violence.

The journalist sued and the case is still pending in US court.

Another journalist sues the Post

In August, the Washington-Baltimore News Association (WBNG) also sued The Washington Post, which represents another employee dissatisfied with the tool’s warnings.

Media reporter Paul Farhi was suspended for five days without charge for commenting on an internal measure in the newspaper on Twitter in March.

On the social network, Farhi criticized the Post’s decision not to publish the names of the authors of the reports and the “dates” of their journalists in Russia (the date and place of release of the articles), on the grounds that the goal is to avoid retaliation from the government by Vladimir Putin.

Paul Farhi, a journalist working for the publication since 1988, tweeted:

“Some Insider News: In response to Putin’s threats against journalists, the Washington Post will remove signatures and dates from stories produced by our journalists in Russia. The aim is to ensure the safety of employees. I’ve never seen anything like it.”

The media reporter is known for broadcasting behind the scenes about journalism, including the newspaper he works for.

According to Fox News, Farhi filed an internal appeal against the suspension on March 15, arguing that it was without reason.

Then the union should mediate the case. However, on August 9, the Post reported that the union agreement had expired (at the end of June) and therefore the complaint was “not compliant with arbitration.”

Ten days later, the Washington-Baltimore News Guild took the case to court on behalf of Paul Farhi, citing the Felicia Sönmez case, to force the appeal to arbitration.

For the syndicate, the journalist’s stance is characterized as “reporting truthfully in the Post news during his tenure as media reporter”.

Also Read | Union sues The Washington Post for suspending media reporter who tweeted about domestic action