Judge allows suit by ex-TV anchor fired after online remarks
PITTSBURGH (AP) — A federal judge has declined to throw out a lawsuit filed by a former Pittsburgh newscaster fired after her comments in a Facebook post about a shooting were deemed racially insensitive.
The judge Friday denied an attempt by Hearst Stations Inc. to dismiss the lawsuit by former WTAE news anchor Wendy Bell.
Bell alleges in the suit that the station fired her March 30 because she is white. She is seeking back pay, punitive damages and her old job.
In a Facebook post, Bell speculated that the March 9 killers of five black people in the poor Pittsburgh suburb of Wilkinsburg were young black men with multiple siblings and fathers. Her comments sparked a backlash but also drew defenders.