A radio presenter in Virginia has been fired after he called a female sports journalist ‘Barbie girl’ and said he had mistook her for a cheerleader live on air.
Don Geronimo, who worked for WBIG, was let go from his job after he referred to Emmy-winning reporter Sharla McBride as a 'chick’ and said: “I'm guessing she's a cheerleader.”
McBride was reporting from the Washington Commanders training camp when Geronimo made the comments live on air.
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During the broadcast, Geronimo said after spotting McBride: “Hey look, Barbie's here. Hi, Barbie girl. I'm guessing she's a cheerleader.”
Later during the broadcast, he saw McBride again - this time carrying out interviews at the training camp and said: “Oh hey. There's that chick that you thought... I think. I think she's a sportscaster at Channel 9. Or Channel 7.”
He added: 'I thought she was a cheerleader.”
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In response, the Commanders stopped iHeartMedia from broadcasting on the premises after the ‘sexually disparaging remarks’.
McBride has since taken to social media to say she’s been overwhelmed by the support she received following the incident.
“I'm humbled and overwhelmed by the amazing support I've received from my fellow journalists in the past 24 hours,” she wrote on social media.
President of the Washington DC Region for iHeartMedia, Aaron Hyland, said: “After an internal review, Don Geronimo is no longer an employee of WBIG. We take matters of this nature very seriously and this behavior does not align with our core values.”
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After it was revealed Geronimo had been fired, McBride announced she would be ‘taking a few days off to process the events which have unfolded in the past 48-hours’.
In a statement, a Commanders’ spokesperson said: "We have worked hard to ensure that everyone feels safe and respected in our workplace, and we took swift action when we learned that an employee of our partner iHeart made sexually disparaging remarks to and about a member of the media while she was broadcasting live from training camp yesterday.
“iHeart and the individual were not permitted to broadcast from Training Camp today, and we will continue to work collaboratively with iHeart to address the issue and trust that iHeart will take appropriate action as it works through an internal investigation.”
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WUSA9 General Manager Richard Dyer said: “Objectifying women is harmful and disrespectful. We’ve heard from the Washington Commanders that they are addressing this situation directly with iHeartRadio.
"Promoting respect, empathy and equal treatment for all individuals, regardless of gender, is crucial for building respect in any workplace.”
Topics: US News
Claire Reid