Report: ‘Ellen’ Show Was Investigated For Gender Discrimination In 2018

TOPLINE

The Ellen DeGeneres Show was investigated over a gender discrimination complaint in 2018, two years before three top producers were fired last week after being accused of sexual misconduct and harassment, according to a BuzzFeed News report published Tuesday.

KEY FACTS

further background

There has been turmoil at The Ellen DeGeneres Show in recent weeks. In mid-July one current and 10 former employees told BuzzFeed about incidents of racism and intimidation on set. The employees did not directly implicate DeGeneres, and the show’s executive producers said in a statement the allegations are “not who we are and not who we strive to be, and not the mission Ellen has set for us,” adding, “for the record, the day to day responsibility of the Ellen show is completely on us.” Two weeks after the allegations were made public, DeGeneres reportedly apologized to staff and said Warner Bros. parent company WarnerMedia and a third-party firm launched an internal investigation into the working conditions at the show and would interview current and former employees. Hours after DeGeneres’ apology, dozens of former The Ellen DeGeneres Show employees accused multiple executive producers of sexual misconduct, harassment and assault in a second Buzzfeed News report. Nearly a dozen former employees accused head writer and executive producer Kevin Leman of sexual misconduct, including groping, making sexually explicit comments and behaving inappropriately at a company party, while Leman said he denied “any kind of sexual impropriety.” Multiple former employees accused executive producer Ed Glavin of “being handsy with women” and leading the team by creating a culture of fear and intimidation, though Glavin did not comment on the allegations. In all, 36 former employees independently corroborated incidents of sexual misconduct, harassment and assault by top producers. Warner Bros. didn’t comment on the sexual misconduct allegations, citing the current investigation, but said in an earlier statement that the primary findings indicated some “deficiencies related to the show’s day-to-day management” resulting in staffing changes and other “appropriate measures” to address the issues.

tangent

The Ellen DeGeneres Show employees will have new perks. Employees will receive five paid days off to use at their discretion, birthdays off and paid time for doctor’s appointments and family matters, a source familiar with the series told Variety. The announcement was reportedly made at a virtual town hall on August 20 in which DeGeneres again apologized to staff for the workplace allegations that occurred “on her watch,” another source said. 

surprising fact

Australia Channel Nine network announced the show will no longer air on the network starting August 24. 

further reading

“Ellen Show” Executives Knew Of Toxic Workplace Allegations In 2018 (BuzzFeed News)

Dozens Of Former “Ellen Show” Employees Say Executive Producers Engaged In Rampant Sexual Misconduct And Harassment (BuzzFeed News)

Former Employees Say Ellen’s “Be Kind” Talk Show Mantra Masks A Toxic Work Culture (BuzzFeed News)

‘Ellen DeGeneres Show’ Workplace Under Investigation by WarnerMedia (Variety)

Why Ellen DeGeneres Won’t Be Canceled (Forbes)