NBC is investigating Entertainment Chairman Paul Telegdy for “presiding over a toxic environment,” according to The Hollywood Reporter. The mag interviewed 30+ execs, producers and current and former staffers.
Telegdy has been battling America’s Got Talent judge Gabrielle Union for months. She accused him of threatening her agent while she was in the process of filing a discrimination suit against NBC. She also filed a harassment complaint accusing NBC “a snake pit of racial offenses,” then said she was fired when she spoke up.
Telegdy and NBC have denied the allegations and an outside investigation sided with the network.
But now, others, including America’s Got Talent‘s Sharon Osbourne, are speaking out. She said that Telegdy threatened her in 2012 when she said her family was considering holding a press conference to protest NBC‘s decision to drop her son Jack from Stars Earn Stripes after opening up about his MS diagnosis.
“He said, ‘Go f**k yourself,'” Osbourne recalled. “If you call the press you’ll never work in this town, you f**king witch.'” She quit AGT over the dispute. Telegdy denied Osbourne’s version of events.
Others who wanted to remain anonymous said that Telegdy used homophobic and misogynistic slurs and sexually harassed people.
In a statement to THR, an NBC spokesperson said: “This narrative is not reflective of the values of NBC Entertainment or the culture we strive to create. NBCUniversal takes these matters seriously, and will investigate these allegations, many of which are coming to our attention for the first time. NBCUniversal remains committed to creating a safe, respectful and supportive workplace for all.”
Telegdy said: “The nature of these allegations flies in the face of everything I stand for. I hope that my actions over decades — empowering those around me, supporting artists, and creating shows with values of aspiration and inclusion at the core — speak louder than the selective words of a few.”