N E W Y O R K S TAT E DIVISION OF HUMAN RIGHTS Andrew Jones, Case Number: Date: January 19, 2018 Complainant, Complaint for The Young Turks, Inc. Violation of Section 107 of the NYCHRL, Violation of Section 296 of the NYSHRL, Violation of Title 7 of the Civil Rights Act. Jonathan Larsen, Respondents. INTRODUCTION 1. Complainant Andrew Jones is a citizen of the state of New York and is currently domiciled in Kings County. 2. Respondent The Young Turks, Inc. (hereinafter "TYT") is a Delaware corporation, with its principal place of business in Culver City, Los Angeles County, California. In addition, TYT has employees in New York City, New York, Washington, D.C., and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. 3. Jonathan Larsen is a citizen of the state of New Jersey who regularly conducts business in New York City, New York. S TAT E M E N T OF THE FACTS 4. In April 2017, TYT armounced that they would be hiring a single new field reporter. 5. Cenk Uygur, the CEO and Founder of the TYT, stated that the decision on who to hire was given exclusively to Respondent Larsen. Hiring Process 6. Respondent Larsen interviewed multiple candidates, including Complainant ComplainanP s Complaint -Page 1 of 17- ooJones, and-- Complainant Jones had considerable experience relevant to the job as he had worked for nearly a decade as a paid journalist since graduation from Boston University in 2009 at outlets ranging from The Intercept to the Guardian, prior to interviewing for the position. At these jobs, he reported and investigated issues in sports and politics. 8. _by contrast had no paid, post-graduate employment as a journalist 1D, 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. prior to her interview at TYT. Instead, her sole experience was a handful of internships while studying at -- which she graduated from - Complainant Jones is black and _is white. Despite Complainant's substantially superior experience, Respondent Larsen chose to hire for the position. At this point, TYT had one black employee, who was a personal friend of the CEO, at the time out of approximately 70 individuals and no black reporters. was introduced by Mr. Uygur at a company party where he expounded on her substantial experience and that she was a recipient of a prestigious award, all of which made it surprising that she was not "89 years old." At no point did he correctly describe this experience as that of an unpaid college internship, nor that the prestigious award was actually a high school award, _was more honest when asked about the award, stating Mr. Uygur "extremely exaggerated . . . It' just a high school award." Uygur explained that--would be a "new cop on the street" for "Wall street" and government officials because TYT "loves looking into the effect of money in politics." Sudden Second gmening Complainant's Complaint -Page 2 of 17- 1 16. A couple of weeks later. Respondent Larsen then contacted Complainant to see if 2 they could speak. At this meeting. Respondent Larsen stated that TYT determined 3 they had "additional money" to hire a second field reporter. 4 17. newly created job. 5 6 At the conclusion of the meeting. Respondent Larsen offered Complainant this 18. Respondent described the job as one where Complainant would be permitted to 7 write about news, politics, and sports, and that he would be provided a budget to 8 travel for investigative work. 9 19. At a later time during TYT meetings in May and June in NYC, an employee of 10 TYT overheard Respondent Larsen state that TYT hired Complainant only 11 "because he was black." The implication was further that Larsen was pushed into 12 hiring Complainant. 13 D i ff e r e n t i a l Tr e a t m e n t o v e r Wr i t t e n Wo r k P r o d u c t 14 20. On Complainant's first day at work Respondent Larsen set out no guidelines or 15 structure for Complainant and was imaware of even basic responsibilities, such as 16 necessary passwords. 17 21. Within a week. Complainant submitted two articles to be published on the TYT's 18 Medium page. For the second article. Respondent Larsen had a problem and 19 stated that "it wasn't up to his professional standards." 20 22. Complainant asked what was wrong with article, but Respondent ignored him. 21 23. The article was eventually published by Respondent without any changes from Complainant's initial submission. 22 23 24. The article was, in fact, well written and well edited. This is not surprising given 24 that Complainant has drafted multiple articles for well-known and well-respected 25 media outlets, including from the Guardian to Salon to Vox, and had his writings Complainanti s Complaint -Page 3 of 17- 25. 26. 27. featured on the Nation, and the Wall Street Journal. Moreover, Complainant had more experience than Respondent Larsen himself at both drafting and editing print journalism. Critically_ with less experience and skill, was never denigrated by Respondent for writing that was inadequate, A simple comparison of the work of the two will demonstrate that-work is not superior. The article, previously referenced in 124, was well reoeived by many and a simple review of the article, "How Bernie Sanders' Brand isn't 'Damaged,' But Rather Enhancedr By Rob Quist and Heath Mello's Defeats," demonstrates it was capably writtenl Differential Treatment in Privileges in 28. 29. By June 2017, it became clear that despite the job description, and Respondent's promises, that Complainant would not be provided with opportunities to travel to engage in investigative work as multiple requests had been denied by Respondent. This was even though _and the other all white employees with the job title same job title of "Field Reporter" were provided the opportunity to travel. Differential Treatment in Recoggjg'gg Noteworthy News 30. 31. In early July, Complainant was finalizing an investigative piece on Comcast's media outlets misleading its viewers about potenu'al bias. This is because they omitted disclosures that their owner, Comcast, was heavily lobbying congress and the FCC to repeal net>>neutrality. Complainant provided Respondent Larsen with the article, but he sat on the article rather than doing his job. Respondent then opted to leave for vacation prior to finishing or providing any comment. Complainant/s Complaint -Page 4 of 17- 1 32. Thus, Complainant was forced to turn to another employee to edit the article. 2 33. The article was a dramatic success; so much so that the CEO of the company, Mr. 3 Uygur, featured it on TYT's flagship broadcast and touted it as an "exclusive." 4 34. Respondent Larsen would later falsely claim that the article to be much less of a 5 success and instead called it "unoriginal" and "imworthy of publishing" in an 6 attempt to create a pretext for later termination. 7 Retaliation by TYT CEO 8 35. Given the praise. Complainant reached out to tiie CEO, Mr. Uygur/ to discuss the 9 difficulties he was having with Respondent Larsen. 10 36. About a month later, on or about August 5,2017. Mr. Uygur finally contacted 11 Complainant personally via phone. Complainant laid out that he felt that 12 Respondent Larsen was treating him unfairly in multiple regards: including a lad 13 of a travel budget, different and shorter deadlines, higher and ever-shifting 14 standards for articles, slower response times, and general hostile behavior. 15 Complainant specifically identified that there appeared to be a racial dimension. 16 37. Mr. Uygur ignored all of his complaints and instead threatened Complainant 17 stating that complaining about racial discrimination by his supervisor was a 18 "fireable offense" in and of itself. He further stated tihat he should discuss his 19 issues directly with the person who was committing the discriminatory acts. iO 38. Mr. Uygur would never respond directly to complaints again. >1 Transfer To TYT Investigates >2 39. A few days later, on or about August 8,2017, Mr. Uygur annoimced that >3 Respondent Larsen would be moved from the established TYT Politics section to 14 the new TYT Investigates. >5 40. Despite having previously complained about Respondent Larsen, Complainant Complainant's Complaint -Page 5 of 17- remained under his supervision, along with-and another journalist Michael Tracey. 41. Respondent Larson's first proposed "exclusive and original" reporting idea was for the team to investigate the effects of the bush tax cuts on corporate behavior, even though this "news" would be a decade old. 42. Complainant told Respondent of this and that this would take him away from his popular work on net neutrality Respondent reiterated that his neteneutrality work was not news and further rejected the concern about the age of the tax cuts saying that old stories can still be valid if new angles were found. 43. Respondent Larsen further stated that it was his hope that each member of the team develop a few "quick tumaround, enterprise reporting" stories so that it looked like TYT investigates was busy and on track, when in reality its launch date would be pushed back multiple times Escalation Differential Treatment 44' On August 21, 2017, Respondent would assign one of these stories to Complainant to report on the Presidential pardon of Joe Arpaio. The problem with Respondent' new "exclusive and original" story was that it was already extensively covered by major outlets for multiple days. 45. Respondent gave no timeline for its completion other than the general statement that a few be done per week by the entire team. 46. However, the next morning at approximately 6:00 am, Respondent emailed Complainant a 5 paragraph list of grievances. The email would however focus only on two issues and, for the first time, Respondent would CC high-level Human-Resouroe Employee, Jack Gerard. 47. One was that Respondent falsely the Arpaio story was late even though Complainant's Complaint -Page 6 of 17- Respondent had set no deadline and the story was issued to Complainant fewer than 24 hours prior. Respondent demanded that Complainant inform him of problems when he is "unable to complete assignments on time" rather than "wait[ing] until the last minute." 48. Respondent would routinely reference this "late submission" as proof of "insubordination" in the future. 49. This violation of his "expectations" was entirely imfounded as Respondent never set a timeline beyond a few quick stories a week for the entire team. As such, there was no deadline so there was no way to "wait imtil the last minute." 50. Moreover, Complainant was finished with the article and was proofreading it to submit by start of business at 9:30am. 51. Mr. Uygur would then read Complainant's article on TYT's flagship program as "another example of good journalism" from our reporters. 52. This would not be the first time that Respondent invented deadlines only for Complainant. 53. The second issue Respondent raised was tiiat Complainant was not checking in with him in the "morning," but rather allegedly "a few minutes before noon ever) day" because that is "the equivalent to showing up for work." Moreover, even just calling "once by phone ... is not acceptable," rather Complainant should call multiple times until he reaches Respondent. 54. First, Respondent is apparently imable to make phone calls after a "missed call" n o t i fi c a t i o n i s r e c e i v e d . 55. Second, Respondent, even by his own admissions, routinely does not answer his employees calls. 56. Third, it is telling that Respondent waited 4 months into complainant's Complainanf s Complaint -Page 7 of 17- 57. employment to reprimand him about violating such a simple and important rule. Fourth, no call requirements were strictly enforced in this matter on either - _or Mr: Tracey and as such, they were never reprimanded for failing to call every day until they actually reach Respondent. Proof of Respondent's Arbitrary and Capricious Behavior 58. 59. 60' 61, 62. 63. The next day, on August 23, 2017, Respondent Larsen and Complainant would speak by phone. During the call, Complainant simply asked for some guidelines to conform his behavior to, but Respondent refused any guidance, stating "You keep looking for rules, and what I'm telling you is, this is a case-by-case business, This is an inherently adversarial relationship. I can't give you rules that are going to apply in even most situations" Respondent went further stating that Complainant was not providing enough "energy" or "passion" to the quick stories and that he "should be an active advocate on behalf of the stories" as his major investigative pieces Respondent was critical because he expected, without ever stating as much, that Complainant was supposed to draft quick stories, but also investigate people on the ground, government officials, etc. Complainant was still denied Any problems with such an approach were simply met as "insubordination." The conversation highlights Respondent Larsen's behavior for what it is: intentionally arbitrary and capricious, He refuses to layout any rules, let alone standards, or even deadlines. He expects Complainant to know and comply with unstated rules nonetheless. He further expects that Complainant finish stories in a matter of hours, but yet also investigate these "quick" stories with the same vigor as his major investigative projects Such a tension is irreconcilable and thus Complainant's Complaint -Page 8 of 17- 1 Respondent's "expectations" are merely a thinly veiled attempt to manufacture a 2 pretext. 3 Second Major Complaint to higher Management Concerning Racial Bias 4 64. Feeling that Respondent's arbitrary and hostile behavior had reached a new 5 height. Complainant, on August 23,2017, contacted the same head of Human 6 Resources, Mr. Gerard, to explain that Respondent Larsen was 1) dishonest and 7 arbitrary in his reprimand and 2) a rationale for why Complainant believed that 8 there was clear evidence of a racial bias on Respondents part given that the other 9 two reports in TYT investigates were not being treated as arbitrarily or as harshly, 10 65. In response, David Koller, the head of HR and one of the fovmders of TYT, called 11 Complainant to discuss his concerns. Complainant explained to him some of 12 Respondent's arbitrary behavior and that Complainant was targeted with 13 different and higher standards than the white reporters, all while being given 14 fewer resources. 15 66. Mr. Koller acted concerned and stated he would start an investigation into the 16 matter given the gravity of the charges. However, Complainant never heard from 17 him directly again. Complainant never heard from anyone else concerning an 18 investigation being conducted or completed, so it is highly likely no investigation 19 ever occurred. 20 67. Moreover, Mr. Koller is publicly known for making racist comments. He referred 21 to less affluent black people in southern America who relax on their porch on hot 22 summer days as "po' black people just hanging out in the heat." This qualified 23 these black people as "negroes [who] were the real deal." 24 25 68. Beyond racist comments, this was also the same person who decided to "launch a bottle rocket in the parking lot" of the "Civil rights Museum, which was made Complainant's Complaint -Page 9 of 17- 69. 70. 71. 72. 73. 74. [out of] the motel where MLK was assassinated," This investigation was critically important because an investigation into Respondent Larsen would have uncovered that he was subject to multiple discrimination complaints during his tenure at if that was not already known by TYT's when he was hired, An executive at the company at a call shortly after issued a veiled threat stating, "if this all works out you are under Larsen, but he may also discontinue your services" A few days later, on September 1, 2017, Respondent Larsen suddenly demanded the first draft of Complainant's investigative piece into the tax cuts and jobs story. However, when Complainant asked--or MI. Tracey if they were asked for their drafts, each said no Respondent would instead notify them on September 4, 2017 for a draft to be submitted on September 8, 2017, a week after he demanded Complainant' 5 without forewamingr Despite the demand, Respondent Larsen would never comment on Complainant's draft. Instead, thirteen days after the first request, on September 14, Respondent asked Complainant for a second draft, despite having never commented on Complainant' first draft Respondent again provided no deadline. On September 18, Complainant again readied out to Mr. Uygur, hoping he would respond as he was in NYC, however Mr. Uygur ignored Complainant' pleas. Retaliation and Escalation of Discriminatory Behavior By Respondent Larsen 75. 76. Two days later, Respondent Larsen placed Complainant on a probationary two- week evaluation. When Complainant asked why, Respondent stated that he was an ineffective investigative journalist as he had failed to create any original or exclusive content. Complainant's Complaint -Page 10 of 17- 77. 78. 79. When Complainant reminded him of Comcast reveal which gained hundreds of thousands of views online, was aired on the flagship network, and praised by CEO Mr. Uyger, Respondent said it wasn't up to his professional standards because it was already widely known. At this point, despite having started earlier,_had not produced any original or exclusive content, despite having a travel budget. Nevertheless, she was not placed on administrative leave. Complainant immediately contacted TYT's head of programming requesting a transfer back to TYT Politics or to TYT Sports stating he believed the issues were the result of problems solely with Respondent. The request was denied allegedly because no role existed. The alleged purpose of the two-week evaluation was for Complainant to 80, 81. 82. demonstrate that he could find toplfi worthy of articles Complainant presented 5 different topics, all of which were rejected. All were rejected, in part, because the proposed topic were incomplete, even though Complainant was not asked to deliver articles, rather topics. One was rejected because another reporter had already covered a different angle, so Complainant's suggestion was probably a waste of time. This is despite Respondent's prior call on August 23 where he expressly advocated that Complainant look to angles not covered in old reporting Most surprisingly, two stories were rejected by Responth even though they showed a tight connection between donor interests, contributions, and politicians' actions. One of the two stories was particularly compelling as it showed money from a cereal company to a congressperson who introduces legislation to reduce recall regulations on cereal is not "newsworthy." Complainant' Complaint -Page 11 of 17- 83. 1 This is stunning because TYT's principal focus is money and its corrupting i n fl u e n c e . 2 84. 3 The last story was rejected because it had already been discussed a month prior, 4 in August, by another company, but otherwise had potential. Respondent 5 acknowledges that it could have been a story, which is important because it is a 6 change in his position from July where he rejected the story. 85. 7 As the above shows. Respondent Larsen has no consistent methodology, but his 8 positions are worse tiian mere chaotic incoherence. Instead, they are calculated 9 positions to oppose whatever Complainant offers at the moment it is being offered, even if that position contradicts a prior position. 10 11 Escalation of Respondents' Discrimination to Termination 12 86. On October 5, as Complainant allegedly failed to meet Respondent's professional 13 standards, TYT, tiirough Mr. Gerard, pushed for Complainant to sign a severance 14 package where he would waive his dvil rights claims, receive approximately one 15 month's salary, and resign. Mr. Gerard indicated resigning quietly was the best 16 thing to do for his career. 17 87. Complainant refused. 18 88. A few days later, Mr. Uygur then contacted Complainant after months of either ignoring his pleas for help or directly threatening him for them. 19 89. 20 On October 9,2017, Complainant was terminated apparently on the grounds of "noticeable" and "definite" improvements. 21 22 90. That same day Mr. Uygur publicly offered a position to an ESPN employee in TYT Sports, despite having told Complainant that the position was not available. 23 24 / / 25 / / Complainant's Complaint -Page 12 of 17- 1 COUNT I 2 Violation of Section 107 ofNYCHRL 3 91. here. 4 5 Complainant incorporates all above paragraphs as if fully set forth and repeated 92. New York City Administrative Code's Civil Rights §8-107(1) states, "It shall be an 6 unlawful discriminatory practice: (a) For an employer or an employee or agent 7 thereof, because of the actual or perceived ... race... of any person: ... (2) To 8 refuse to hire or employ or to bar or to discharge from employment such person; 9 or (3) To discriminate against such person in compensation or in terms, conditions or privileges of employment." 10 11 93. known racist comments and acts directed against black people. 12 13 Respondents TYT placed as the head of Human Resources, despite publicly 94. Respondent's CEO has made racist comments by denying his own ethnicity as 14 Turkish and claiming to be white. He has made further racist comments against 15 Native Americans as "redskins" who are always looking to swindle people. 16 95. Respondents TYT and Larsen discriminated against Complainant by hiring a 17 person of substantially lower qualification than him because she was white while 18 he was black. 19 96. Respondents TYT and Larsen further discriminated against Complainant by 20 providing him with no travel budget despite the job description, verbal promise. 21 and despite providing it to white employees of the same rank and title. 22 97. Respondent TYT and Larsen further discriminated against Complainant by 23 holding his work product to higher standards than that of his white counterparts 24 and denigrating said work product without cause. This is even though it actually 25 met the standards of the company, which is conclusively shown by the fact that Complainanf s Complaint -Page 13 of 17- 1 Respondents published it without changes. 2 98. Moreover, Respondent Larsen attacked the quality of Complainant's writing 3 likely to imply that the only black journalist in the organization was less 4 intelligent tiian his white coimterparts, despite more experience. 5 99. Respondents TYT and Larsen further discriminated against Complainant by 6 failing to perform their obligations to edit submitted work on a timely basis. The 7 first and most significant example of this was Complainant's net-neutrality article. 8 Respondent opted to go on vacation rather than read it. This despite the fact that 9 the article, once Complainant foimd someone to approve it, went on to receive 10 praise from the Respondents' CEO, and commentators. The clip of the broadcast 11 that discussed this article on air received himdreds of thousands of YouTube 12 views. 13 ICQ. Respondent Larsen doubled down on his discriminatory behavior by refusing to 14 credit this work despite clear indications that he had been overruled. 15 101. Respondent TYT and Larsen further discriminated against Complainant by 16 punishing and reprimanding Complainant for alleged violations of ever-shifting 17 and arbitrary rules. These rules were so arbitrary and capricious that Respondent 18 Larsen could not even create a comprehensive guide of any sort when 19 Complainant pleaded for guidance. 20 102. For example. Complainant was expected to call every day, multiple times if 21 necessary, to "check-in." This "requirement" was invented in late August. For 22 example. Complainant was expected to draft stories within mere hours, but also 23 engage in substantive investigations for those same stories. For example, 24 Complainant was not told what or when his deadlines were, but was 25 reprimanded and called "insubordinate" for "missing" said illusory deadlines. Complainant's Complaint -Page 14 of 17- 1 103. Respondent Larsen perfectly described the illegal arrangement he had created 2 when he stated their relationship was supposed to be "adversarial." No other 3 member of the team stated that they had an adversarial relationship because they 4 didn't. Lawsuits are adversarial, not employment relationships. 5 104. None of the above arbitrary and capricious behavior or standards were ever 6 applied to Respondent Larsen's white employees. 7 105. Respondent TYT was put on notice of this behavior clearly and in writing again in 8 late August. While Respondent TYT claimed they would investigate the matter, 9 they did not. Instead, Respondent implemented the warning CEO Uyger warned 10 Complainant about. Two weeks later. Respondents placed Complainant on an 11 "evaluation period" and then terminated him at the end of that period, despite 12 "noticeable" and "definite" improvement and the fact that he had objectively 13 outperformed his white colleagues. 14 106. New York City's Administrative Code's Civil Rights §8-107(2) further states, "It 15 shall be an unlawful discriminatory practice for any person engaged in any 16 activity to which this chapter applies to retaliate or discriminate in any manner 17 against any person because such person has (i) opposed any practice forbidden 18 under this chapter ..." 19 107. Complainant complained to Respondent TYT's CEO about a potential racial basis 20 for his disparate treatment. In response the CEO immediately informed him that 21 such a complaint is "a fireable offense" and that he should "shut the fuck up and 22 deal with it." 23 108. This warning is likely to cause a chilling effect on complaints and is thus 24 actionable retaliation. 25 109. All of the foregoing caused Complainant considerable economic injury in the Complainant's Complaint -Page 15 of 17- 1 form of lost wages and a harmed reputation. It further caused him considerable 2 emotional distress that escalated as he was treated in an illegal and bigoted 3 matter. 4 110. The foregoing also amounts to intentional and egregious illegal behavior 5 warranting the imposition of punitive damages as the TYT permitted a high level 6 employee to engage in discriminatory behavior, ratified said behavior by 7 knowingly refusing to correct, and terminating Complainant about this behavior, 8 despite his superior work product. 9 10 COUNT Violation of n Section 296 ofNYSHRL 11 111. Complainant incorporates all above paragraphs as if fully set forth and repeated 12 here. 13 112. New York's Executive law §296 states, "It shall be an unlawful discriminatory 14 practice: (a) For an employer or licensing agency, because of an individual's... 15 race ... to refuse to hire or employ or to bar or to discharge from employment 16 such individual or to discriminate against such individual in compensation or in 17 terms, conditions or privileges of employment." 18 113. All of the foregoing caused Complainant considerable economic injury in the 19 form of lost wages and a harmed reputation. It further caused him considerable 20 emotional distress that escalated as he was treated in an illegal and bigoted 21 matter. 22 COUNT m 23 Violation of Title 7 of the Civil Rights Act 24 114. Complainant incorporate all above paragraphs as if fully set forth and repeated 25 here. Complainant's Complaint -Page 16 of 17- 1 115. Title VII of the Civil Rights act, 42 U.S.C. 2000e(a) states, "It shall be an unlawful 2 employment practice for an employer—(1) to fail or refuse to hire or to discharge 3 any individual, or otherwise to discriminate against any individual with respect 4 to his compensation, terms, conditions, or privileges of employment, because of 5 such individual's race..." 6 116. All of the foregoing caused Complainant considerable economic injury in the 7 form of lost wages and a harmed reputation. It further caused him considerable 8 emotional distress that escalated as he was treated in an illegal and bigoted 9 matter. 10 117. The foregoing also amounts to intentional and egregious illegal behavior 11 warranting the imposition of punitive damages as the TYT permitted a high level 12 employee to engage in discriminatory behavior, ratified said behavior by 13 knowingly refusing to correct, and terminating Complainant about this behavior, 14 despite his superior work product. 15 Respectfully submitted, 16 Hawgood Hawgood «& MORiY^, LLP 17 18 Alexander D. Hawgobd III, Esq. #1412160381 19 AIex.Hawgood@Hawgood. cc 20 244 Fifth Avenue, Suite 2268 New York, New York 10001 21 (301) 439-0394 22 Mail to: 23 10015 Old Columbia Rd. Suite B215 Columbia, Maryland 21046 24 (301)439-0394 25 Complainant's Complaint -Page 17 of 17-