Former Editor Files Discrimination And Retaliation Lawsuit Against New York Post
18.01.2022 - 23:24
/ deadline.com
A former top editor of the New York Post has filed a lawsuit against the New York Post, alleging that she endured years of sexual harassment by former longtime editor Col Allan, but was demoted and dismissed following her complaints about it.
Michelle Gotthelf was fired last week, according to her lawsuit, after a 21-year career at the publication, most recently as editor in chief of NewYorkPost.com. Allan also was named in the lawsuit along with current editor in chief Keith Poole, as well as NYP Holdings and parent company News Corp.
A spokesperson for the Post and News Corp. said in a statement, “Any suggestion of wrongdoing related to the management changes announced today is meritless.”
In her lawsuit, filed in federal court on Tuesday, Gotthelf alleges that she was subject to Allan’s harassment, including a time in 2015 when he propositioned her for sex and told her, “We should sleep together.” The next day, according to the lawsuit, she reported what happened to two New York Post editors, who urged her to report it to HR.
“Ms. Gotthelf, however, was afraid,” according to her lawsuit. “She told her two colleagues that Mr. Allan was likely to retaliate against her if she reported his behavior. She hoped to “ride it out” and that things would get better.”
“They did not. Mr. Allan became even more abusive after Ms. Gotthelf rejected his advances. He refused to make eye contact with Ms. Gotthelf and often killed stories that she supported for no apparent reason.”
She finally did complain to the head of HR and to the in-house counsel. The lawsuit claims that her complaint was disclosed to Allan and that he was forced to retire in 2016.
Gotthelf was then offered the title of managing editor in an effort to keep her quiet, the