Former KC Anchor Sues Her Old Station
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A former Kansas City Anchor is suing her old station and its owner Meredith for age and gender discrimination.
The KC Star says that former KCTV Anchor Karen Fuller filed suit Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Kansas City, Kan., against the Meredith Corporation, owner of the station based in Fairway.
Fuller alleges in the suit that the company has created an “age ceiling” for its female anchors but not for male anchors.
“Women age out in their mid- to late 40s,” the lawsuit alleges. “The company does not enforce the same age-related job requirement for male prime time anchors.”
A call to Meredith headquarters in Iowa seeking comment was not immediately returned Wednesday afternoon.
Fuller was was hired in 2003 to co-anchor for the station’s prime time newscasts, according to her suit.
Throughout her employment, the suit says that she never received any type of verbal or written warning about her job performance, and was never told that her job was in jeopardy.
Her contract was “repeatedly” renewed. But in January 2015, with her contract up for renewal that April, she was terminated at the age of 47 “without prior warning, cause or legal justification,” according to the suit.
“In the eyes of Meredith Corporation, women news anchors like Ms. Fuller, unlike their male counterparts, simply become too old to deliver the news,” she alleges in the lawsuit.
Her last day at the station was Feb. 25, 2015. She asked station management to allow her a few seconds during the final broadcast at 10 p.m. to thank viewers.
But after the 6 p.m. newscast that night, Fuller was met by management and told she needed to leave the building, according to the suit.
“The company’s strong-arm behavior assaulted her dignity, cast aspersion on Ms. Fuller’s many years of hard work, professionalism, and loyalty to her job, and took away Ms. Fuller’s ability to say goodbye to co-workers, friends and viewers,” the suit alleges.
The suit seeks an unspecified amount in damages.
