NBC News digital staffers announced the formation of a union Wednesday and accused the network of mishandling multiple allegations of sexual conduct dating back years in their first statement.
Network executives Noah Oppenheim and Andy Lack were accused of squashing Ronan Farrow’s reporting on Harvey Weinstein’s sexual harassment and sexual assault allegations in his new book, Catch and Kill, and Farrow accused the executives of fumbling the allegations against former Today host Matt Lauer.
The staff has chosen representatives from the NewsGuild of New York, which also represents employees at the New York Times, the New Yorker, according to the New York Times.
“Our mission is to uphold the legacy of NBC News while empowering and protecting those who will build its future,” the workers’ statement reads. “No organization is perfect, and there are serious issues that keep the company from being as great as it can be. A company with such incredible resources can and should do more to close gender and race wage gaps, address chronic understaffing, meaningfully prioritize diversity, promote transparency, and offer job protections.”
[Read more: ‘Unzipped his pants’: Matt Lauer hit with fresh claim as Today show booker says he exposed himself]
They also addressed the allegations that the network mishandled those accusations of sexual misconduct.
“NBC News has mishandled serious incidents of sexual misconduct and racism without the transparency and sensitivity such issues require,” it went on. “Recent weeks have highlighted serious questions as to how NBC News has handled incidents of sexual misconduct in the workplace as well as the opaque processes and procedures for reporting on and exposing powerful predators. NBC News repeatedly refused calls for an independent review on both counts despite numerous such requests from staff.”
Two of the network’s most popular anchors Rachel Maddow and Chris Hayes, have spoken out against their employer during their respective shows. In both cases, they called for an outside investigation of how those matters were handled.
