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        <title><![CDATA[Warner Bros. execs address ‘unacceptable behavior’ claims at ‘Ellen,’ TMZ]]></title>
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            <media:title type="html">Warner Bros. execs address ‘unacceptable behavior’ claims at ‘Ellen,’ TMZ</media:title>
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        <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Warner Bros. executives addressed the allegations Thursday against executives at TMZ and “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” <strong>made by a number of former and current employees</strong>.</p><p>“I am both concerned and disappointed by public reports regarding <strong>patterns of unacceptable behavior</strong> that have been raised in recent weeks,&#8221; WarnerMedia CEO Jason Kilar told staff in an email, according to <strong>BuzzFeed News</strong>.</p><p>Warner Bros. CEO Ann Sarnoff spoke out about the issue in a memo, saying she “empowered, and will hold accountable, the Studios and Networks HR and Legal teams to act on any issues that are brought to them. These groups are a safe harbor where you can register any concerns.”</p><p>These statements come after dozens of allegations have been made, including of verbal abuse, racism and sexism in the TMZ newsroom, as well as sexual harassment and misconduct and <strong>general toxicity</strong> behind the scenes at &#8220;Ellen.&#8221;</p><p>One current employee told BuzzFeed that TMZ co-founder Harvey Levin and other Warner Bros. executives have not addressed the employees&#8217; concerns, expressing that staffers feel they are not being taken seriously.</p><p>The employee came forward after Bernadette Zilio, a former TMZ and TooFab employee, <strong>filed a lawsuit</strong> against the news outlet, claiming she was fired after complaining about sexism.</p><p>Zilio worked for the websites between 2015 and 2020, and described the work environment as “100% a bro fest,” likening it to a frat house in papers she filed with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in Los Angeles. She was fired in February.</p><p>A spokesperson for TMZ told BuzzFeed the claims were “a blatant attempt to use negative publicity and inaccurate claims to force TooFab and TMZ to pay a monetary settlement.”</p><p>“TMZ has a history of doing this — sweeping things under the rug and thinking that the news will move on to something else,” a current employee anonymously told BuzzFeed.</p><p>Kilar included in his message that it will be a requirement to all existing and prospective partners “that people be treated with dignity &#8230; Our intention [is] to sever ties where patterns of behavior are at odds with that requirement.”</p><p>These messages also come days before &#8220;The Ellen DeGeneres Show&#8221; is scheduled to begin a new season.</p><p>Three senior producers at the show — Ed Glavin, Kevin Leman and Jonathan Norman — <strong>were fired in August</strong> following the allegations.</p><p>In response, DeGeneres is <strong>increasing perks</strong> for her employees, including increased paid time off and birthdays off. She wrote in an <strong>apology memo</strong> that she hopes to &#8220;correct&#8221; the issues about the behavior on her show, and plans to address the behavior with her viewers <strong>when her show returns</strong> Sept. 21.</p><p>Kilar also claimed Warner Bros. is involving a third party to objectively review odd patterns of behavior in their productions.</p>]]></content:encoded>
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