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Freelance journalist Dominic Patten is a Deadline contributor
UPDATE, 7:50 PM: ”We haven’t seen the complaint and can’t comment on the specifics,” a CBS spokesperson told Deadline, “but the claim as we understand it is without merit and will be vigorously defended.”
PREVIOUS: CBS is being sued for sexual discrimination by man who says he was told the network had to hire a woman for the position.
The lawyer for Daysun Perkins filed a 12-page civil suit against CBS Corporation and CBS Television Distribution today in LA County Superior Court. According to the suit, Aaron Meyerson told him in March 2011 that he “would not be hired” for the position of VP of Development because of his gender. “I gotta go girl,” Perkins’ suit claims Meyerson, who is President of Programming and Development at CBS TV Distribution, said. “This job is not worth getting a sex change over.”
Perkins, who is presently GSN’s Executive Director, Original Programming & Development, claims that Meyerson told him he was “qualified for the position and that he had excellent references.” Part of those references would have undoubtedly been Perkins stint, from 2003 to 2008, as Director of Development at CBS TV Distribution.
The suit claims that CBS’ action was done in “A malicious, fraudulent and oppressive manner” that has caused Perkins “to suffer humiliation, emotional distress and mental and physical pain and anguish.” Perkins is seeking undisclosed damages, lawyer’s fees, and “for such other and further relief as the Court may deem just and proper.”
Perkins is represented by Steven Browne of the Browne Law Firm.
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Suffered physical pain? Did you get kicked in the balls at the end of the interview? Way to sue yourself out of the business.
Seriously….
This happens all the time, everywhere. A friend tried for years to be admitted into the local police force – there were advertisements on television and billboards everywhere asking for applicants – but he was told they “have enough white males.” So, instead of going with someone who wanted to risk being shot helping people, they wanted to try to convince someone who was not considering the police force to give it a try.
So embarrassing for him. Get over it and move on.
The law is ridiculous when applied this way. California’s Workplace Discrimination laws are absurd. And lawyers are making a fortune off them.
DAYSUN,DAYSUN, DAYSUN, what are you doing? I have no doubt what you said is true but why screw up your career because someone had the audacity to be candid with you when rejecting you for a job? Believe me if your qualifications and interview were so overwhelming the guy would have ignored the gender issue and made the move. Meyerson is so over his head in that job anyway and everyone in town knows it. It could have been a short while until you were interviewing with someone else for the same job. Now everyone in town is going to be scared to hire you….You may be getting good legal advice (who knows) but you are getting bad career advice….
Are you kidding me?
If this had been a women or a Black candidate in the same position you’d NEVER say these things.
I have been told REPEATEDLY in this business – “The next person you hire has to be BLACK, FEMALE, LATINO, ETC. …. HAS TO BE. I’m told this despite the fact that there were a half dozen female, black and latino candidates that I DID want to hire but who weren’t available. But I was told that I had to get “one of them” , which in and of itself is offensive. You should only hire those that are qualified and if you should not give a crap what color they are. If you do, you’re a racist and a fool – no matter whom you are excluding from employment.
Here’s the thing.
When doing the hiring, absent any EEO requirements, a hiring manager will hire the person s/he deems to be the most qualified; which is most likely someone exactly like him–a white male. It doesn’t matter whether the person actually *is* the most qualified.
In a field of candidates, there may be 3-4 all equally qualified, but if the hiring manager is a white male, that’s who he will pick–another white male. It’s all about a comfort level.
That’s why these diversity requirements exist. Otherwise the hiring managers will continuously hire clones of themselves.
And this is nothing NOTHING compared to age discrimination. That one is the real elephant in the room.
As a white male who hires, I can say you are sadly mistaken and your rhetoric only perpetuates this stupidity. I’m sure there are a few who hire for the wrong reasons, but that’s not the norm. I’m also sure that the #1 reason among the idiots who hire for the wrong reason is “good looking”, not race or gender.
Rather, will anyone be scared now to fire him? He’s got an executive job at GSN. Seems like getting turned down for being male didn’t put him on the unemployment line. According to dates on his resume, he was at GSN when he applied for the VP job at CBS. Am I the only one who’s offended that he’s suing for damages when he was never out of a job? And since Daysun worked at CBS with Meyerson for 5 years prior, I’d bet that Meyerson thought he had the kind of relationship where he could be honest and say what was really gong on (allegedly). I’d take that over wondering what went wrong any day.
Meyerson is the best thing that has happened to CBS. Whoever says he is in over his head clearly doesn’t know the business.
r u joking? or are you a family member?
Assuming this true, and it sounds to be it given his resume, he is standing up for his rights, and for the rights of everyone discriminated for a job because they don’t fit the mold – whatever mold that maybe. I think many people fear that speaking up will create a backlash or hurt someones career and I hope everyone who learns of this knows we must protect those who do speak up. It’s for everyone’s sake, women and minorities too if/when they find themselves in that position.
Daysun is not alone. More to come.
The attitude of the accused offender(as quoted by the complaint) sounds about right. When will Deadline do a feature on the toxic environment that is the Hollywood workplace?
Sounds like the lawsuit going on now involving a weather guy who’s suing 2 CBS affiliates in CA because they turned him down in favor of young, attractive females who he felt were less qualified than him. He claims he was told the stations wanted to attract more male viewers and he’s not the type men would want to look at.
I can understand these guy’s frustration but won’t this publicity hurt their chances for other opportunities? I can imagine companies not even interviewing them now so they won’t be placed in a position to potentially decline them.
Assuming the allegations are true, this is a slam-dunk case for the plaintiff.
Hmmmm interesting. Career suicide? He’s a mid level exec at GSN. Where’s he going?
I have heard from close to the source that Meyerson and the man who hired him are taking CBS Television Distribution nowhere fast. Meyerson always lacked the skills needed for his position, let alone the position being questioned in the lawsuit. Pretentious hack of Development.
Loos like you were right! Just googling Mayerson to see if he had been fired yet. Such a dweeb.