A former Nexstar Media Group television news director who was fired for orchestrating a controversial all-staff memo two years ago will take a substantial step toward settling a defamation and wrongful termination case against his former employer.
This week, a federal judge overseeing the lawsuit filed by former WOOD-TV (Channel 8) News Director Stanton Tang against Nexstar ordered both parties to participate in a settlement conference scheduled for December.
The settlement conference is intended to give both sides the opportunity to avoid a costly and prolonged federal jury trial. The goal of the proceeding is to amicably resolve the case, but it doesn’t necessarily mean a settlement will be reached.
Tang sued Nexstar last year, about a year after he was fired for directing his assistant news director Amy Tang to write and circulate a memo to WOOD-TV journalists urging them to pull back on coverage of Pride Month festivities in Michigan. The memo said employees needed to be mindful that some of WOOD-TV’s audience was politically conservative.
“We need to recognize that some stories related to LGBTQ issues are going to be controversial and polarizing in our community,” Wood wrote in the memo. “While you personally may not agree with a certain position, people are entitled to their opinions, and they are our viewers.”
The memo led to an uprising within WOOD-TV’s newsroom, with reporters vowing not to follow its orders. A copy of the memo was first published by The Desk in a publicly-accessible format, and led to national news stories about the matter.
Nexstar launched an investigation into the origins of the memo, and eventually determined Fox and Tang violated the company’s editorial policies. Both were fired, as were two newsroom employees who spoke openly and critically about the matter.
Tang filed his lawsuit against Nexster about a year later, accusing the broadcaster of wrongfully ending his employment. He also accused Nexstar executives of disparaging him in public comments to CNN and other news organizations during and after the company’s investigation.
Nexstar denies any wrongdoing. Fox and Tang were deposed by the company’s attorneys earlier this year, and both sides have had a chance to question current and former executives and station employees under oath, according to court records.
While Nexstar has vowed to fight Tang’s lawsuit, the company’s $6 billion merger with peer broadcast TEGNA may ultimately convince it to settle a case that could prove to be a distraction as it seeks regulatory approval for the transaction.
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