01/31/2007
Gay Texas DJ Fired Over MySpace Page
Justin "Tyme" Pascullo, a disc jockey in Amarillo, was fired from his job at KBZD Energy 99.7 for "inappropriate" content on a MySpace page considered "inconsistent" with the station's policies.
According to Pascullo, the content in question was "a line on his MySpace profile, in which he said who he sleeps with shouldn't be any concern to anyone."
Tejas broadcasting CFO Derrick Varnell, responding to alleged statements by the company's chief officer saying Pascullo's site "promoted homosexuality", told the Amarillo Globe: "We felt he was a threat to our reputation (in Amarillo) and a threat to the society as a whole by publishing such things on Web sites that are associated with us...The content of some of those blog entries of Justin, on those Web sites, entailed sexual solicitations. Those are inappropriate, inconsistent with what we allow through our company policy and he was terminated because of that."
Amarillo attorney Vicki Wilmarth seemed to suggest that the radio station had a decent case against Pascullo as "(Employers) have a right to look on the Internet just like anyone else" and "They are not breaking any law by discriminating against somebody on the basis of their homosexuality."
Sphere: Related ContentPosted 12:19 PM EST by Andy in Discrimination, News, Texas | Permalink
Like it?
Subscribe to FREE Towleroad daily headlines with our RSS feed!
RECENT STORIES:
Comments
You can follow this conversation by subscribing to the comment feed for this post.
Sigh. On a daily basis I wonder just how fucked up this country is going to get.
Posted by: peterparker | Jan 31, 2007 12:24:30 PM
That's true, isn't it? Companies in some states can fire you for being gay?
Posted by: Derrick | Jan 31, 2007 12:33:35 PM
I live in London. Things are getting progressively better for gay men here all the time. People largely tend not to care what your sexuality is here these days. What the hell is going on in the US? We just don't get it.
Posted by: JETHRO | Jan 31, 2007 12:34:19 PM
Without taking the "it's fucked up" perspective, it's fascinating how personal boundaries and privacy are changing in our society. The internet is forcing all of us to learn boundaries in new ways, because once it's on the internet, it's "out there"... and the internet is accessable at home, at work, on cell phones, in hotels, everywhere.
It sucks that this guy got fired essentially for what he does in his personal life, but the issue to look at is how do we define boundaries, how do we define "my space" (MySpace) versus "work space", when the two can co-mingle so easily now?
Posted by: Thomas | Jan 31, 2007 12:36:09 PM
Thomas is so right. Did the DJ mention his employer in his MySpace page? If not, then I think he'd have a stronger case for wrongful termination.
And the lawyer is right... it's perfectly legal in Texas (and in most other states) for someone to be fired solely because of their sexual orientation.
Posted by: Brian | Jan 31, 2007 12:40:07 PM
Jethro,
The US is suffering from what we've always suffered from... the legacy of our puritanical settlers. We just can't seem to shake it.
Posted by: Brian | Jan 31, 2007 12:41:53 PM
Well, should be no surprise. I'm from San Antonio, and there are millions of uneducated, bible brainwashed bigots, and general stupidity down there.
Posted by: dattexas | Jan 31, 2007 12:41:56 PM
Uhm, I think you mean "Amarillo" DJ. KZBD is a radio station in Amarillo, not in San Antonio. There's a few hundred miles of difference between the two ...
Posted by: chris | Jan 31, 2007 12:42:58 PM
This is outrageous.
Posted by: Jere | Jan 31, 2007 12:44:31 PM
Unbefuckinglievable.
Posted by: Nikko | Jan 31, 2007 12:52:36 PM
The station and the DJ are in Amarillo, not San Antonio.
Posted by: Mitch | Jan 31, 2007 12:54:39 PM
Texas is an "at will" employement state, meaning that any employer can fire you for any reason, and for no reason at all. If they don't like your hair, or your clothing, or the church that you attend they can simply fire you without cause.
Posted by: Wayne | Jan 31, 2007 1:00:13 PM
Uhm, I think you mean "Amarillo" DJ. KZBD is a radio station in Amarillo, not in San Antonio. There's a few hundred miles of difference between the two ...
Posted by: chris | Jan 31, 2007 12:42:58 PM
____________________________________________
Thanks for the geography lesson. Good thing my comments apply equally to Amarillo.
Whew!
Posted by: dattexas | Jan 31, 2007 1:00:31 PM
Texas, the asshole of the world.
Posted by: Johnny | Jan 31, 2007 1:02:12 PM
Now he's applying for a job at Focus on the Family! He needs to get a clue about his next employer.
Posted by: Anon | Jan 31, 2007 1:09:29 PM
Hey guys, Not sure why I typed San Antonio in the first half of the piece when it should have been Amarillo, as in the rest of it. Thanks for the correction.
Posted by: andy | Jan 31, 2007 1:10:53 PM
Texas really is a fucked up country.
Posted by: Bard | Jan 31, 2007 1:15:51 PM
Fucked. Up. This is like Guilded Age-style lack of employee protection.
Fun to hear, especially considering that I just made plans to visit my sister in Texas this May. My employers here in Minnesota would be up shit creek if they so much as outed me to someone else in the workplace.
Posted by: burnssuit | Jan 31, 2007 1:24:30 PM
I undertsand that information on the internet is at the beck and call of any individual, employer or system but if an employer does not already have a policy against hiring someone due to age/gender/ race/sexuality/religion why should the simple act of stating it be grounds for dismissal? This isnt the military here, that makes it pretty clear that its members must stay closeted. This is a civilian business that seems to be enforcing rules and standards they might have never had.
Posted by: Toto | Jan 31, 2007 1:28:38 PM
It's true: gay is the new Black. There oughta be a law against this sort of discrimination.
Posted by: John | Jan 31, 2007 1:40:03 PM
About the only thing we can do now is go after the advertisers for this bigoted station. I'm trying to find a list of advertisers now.
Posted by: Steve | Jan 31, 2007 1:42:37 PM
"They are not breaking any law by discriminating against somebody on the basis of their homosexuality."
God, that's so depressingly true.
Posted by: Wells. | Jan 31, 2007 1:43:29 PM
Unfortunately, Toto, as was posted earlier, very few states in the US have anti-discrimination laws that include "sexual orientation" and/or "gender expression." It's as legal to fire someone in Texas for being gay as it is to fire them for poor work performance. Remember, that Sodomy laws were still being enforced in Texas until the Supreme Court struck them down in 2003, in the decision of Lawrence V. Texas.
Posted by: Jason | Jan 31, 2007 1:43:31 PM
John,
Well, if they would ever pass ENDA, there would be a federal law about this type of discrimination. I don't know the details about if religious organizations would be exempt.
Posted by: gryphon773 | Jan 31, 2007 1:44:57 PM
Okay, I agree that this INCIDENT is pathetic, but I take issue with those of you calling Texas "the asshole of the world" and a "fucked up country". First, Texas isn't it's own country, it's part of the US, and therefor subject to all National laws that apply. The fact that a state can still discriminate based on these reasons is terrible, but it's a national issue, not just a state issue. Second, having lived in Texas most of my life I believe that those bashing my home only do so because you've never lived here. Yes, there's discrimination, but show me a state where there isn't...especially against gays. Even Cali, and New York have their issues, so let's not make this a Texas issue...it's a HUMAN issue. Texas is a beautiful state with many caring people. We have lakes, rivers, mountains, oceans...you name it and it's here. And we also have assholes and bigots, but that doesn't make the entire state a bad place. I'll step down from my soap box now. I'm just amazed at home many people throw verbage around before thinking it through.
Posted by: Wayne | Jan 31, 2007 1:51:06 PM