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."
Posted 12:19 PM EST by Andy Towle in Discrimination, News, Texas | Permalink
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What a surprise, bigotry and prejudice in Texas. Just imagine if some ignorant bigot politician from that armpit of a state managed to get elected to higher office... Oops, too late, it already happened...
Posted by: Robert In WeHo | Jan 31, 2007 1:51:21 PM
grown ass man with a myspace page ?
Posted by: m | Jan 31, 2007 2:03:12 PM
I've heard plenty of stories where in states that have anti-discrimination laws, gays were forced out by trumped-up sexual harassment and hostile work environment claims. If they want to get rid of you they will find a way. (I believe Nip/Tuck demonstrated this problem recently too.) Heck, they'll just make your assignments hell and you'll eventually quit. In states with anti-discrimination laws, most charities, churches, newspapers and other "first amendment" institutions are exempt, and this could conceivably include radio stations. The NY Times doesn't have to hire conservatives as it were. Please check your local listings.
Posted by: anon | Jan 31, 2007 2:04:51 PM
It's worthwhile to resist the impulse to say "there oughta be a law" when faced with an outcome we don't like. Government power usually comes with a downside. Are there readers here who would support the right to fire "at will" if an employee or co-worker was engaged in distasteful, yet after-hours, behavior?
Imagine, say, that a television star makes an anti-gay statement (after work, for the sake of this example). To make this fun, let's imagine the star's name is Isaiah Washington. If the fans insist, should the studio be able to let the homophobic star go for this offense?
Posted by: A Different View | Jan 31, 2007 2:31:53 PM
I love the "he was threat to the society as a whole" bit.. Jesus, why don't they just lynch him and have done with it. Appalling. You've really got a fight on your hands from where I'm sitting (the uk). Texas is clearly going to be the last state to be dragged a-kicking and a-hollering into the 20th century...
Posted by: Atheist | Jan 31, 2007 2:39:30 PM
Texas is not the asshole of the world. My Texan city (and others in the state) have defined city ordinances that protect gays and lesbians from hiring/firing practices.
I hate when people bash Texas as there are some amazing people who call Texas home.
Posted by: Blair | Jan 31, 2007 2:46:52 PM
Blair, you're absolutely right. Texas is far too large and diverse to be colored with one brush stroke. Austin, for example, is a lovely city.
Posted by: Brian | Jan 31, 2007 2:51:29 PM
A Different View, this situation and the Isaiah Washington situation are completely different. Washington made the statements about a co-worker while he was at work. This man was fired AND HE'S NOT EVEN SAYING HE'S HOMOSEXUAL he said who he sleeps with is no one's business. Also, while it's different for people in the public eye--which includes DJ's--no I don't think employers should have the right to fire people just because they don't like what they do on their own time.
Posted by: Daniel | Jan 31, 2007 3:09:31 PM
M: have you ever been to Myspace before? There are plenty of grown ass men and women. I have a slew of friends and none of them are teenagers, outside of my niece and nephew.
Does anyone have a link to Mr. Pascullo's myspace page? I'd like to add him as a friend, another grown ass man friend.
Posted by: Patch Rock | Jan 31, 2007 3:14:36 PM
Isaiah Washington reportedly assaulted another cast member. For that he should be fired. He also reportedly called another a faggot, for that he should have his ass kicked. He's an adult male who lives in this society, he knew exactly what he was doing. I don't care if it's Texas or anywhere else. When I leave work if I want to hump a dead monkey that's my business. If someone wants to fire me for that, then we're both better off because I didn't want to be working there in the first damn place. That people are bigoted assholes should be no surprise to anyone on this site. Consider who and what they are, I'm not a huge fan of Texas, but it shouldn't matter the locale. Focus on right and wrong and stop the blame game or we'll never make any progress.
Posted by: jake0526 | Jan 31, 2007 3:20:28 PM
Hey M - I see you're a grown ass man with your own MySpace page. Or perhaps someone else is using your e-mail address and set you up a page...
Do you live in a glass house? Just wondering.
Posted by: Devon | Jan 31, 2007 3:31:06 PM
Jake0526 and Daniel:
The scenario I offered with Isaiah Washington was a hypothetical. That's why I used the word "imagine" and specifically mentioned that the speech in my hypoethical took place off the job. I wasn't directly addressing whether the studio should be able to fire him in the situation that actually occurred. I was only wondering whether readers here think that the studio should have been able to fire him if he had only made an anti-gay statement (such as calling someone a faggot) on his own time. I suspect that many readers here would support such a right to fire. And if so, then you're not really against "at will" employment policies -- you're only against them when they are used against your supporters. That's a hypocrisy worth pointing out.
Posted by: A Different View | Jan 31, 2007 3:41:28 PM
A Different View, I think the hypothetical you're getting at with Washington is a little skewed, since this seems to run with the implication that these "off-hours" statements will be made very apparent to others (and therefore the entertainment news media). I believe this would qualify as creating a hostile work environment for other possibly gay or gay employees. If, for example, my co-worker was a prominent anti-gay figure in the community and delivered hate speech in front of the local news media, etc, that everyone was aware of, at the very least my boss would meet with this co-worker to determine in very absolute terms that this CANNOT effect the perceived comfort or safety level of other employees, gay or gay-friendly. I don't see anything unreasonable or hypocritical in that regard.
Posted by: burnssuit | Jan 31, 2007 4:09:16 PM
Burnssuit:
You raise a good point. An employee who makes public, anti-gay statements off the job could make things uncomfortable for gay co-workers on the job. By the same token, I imagine that homophobic employees could feel uncomfortable working with co-workers who make public, but off-the-clock, pro-gay (or anti-anti-gay) statements. Although I'm not a lawyer, I doubt that either scenario constitutes sexual harassment or the creation of a hostile workplace, in the legal sense of those terms -- nor should it.
I'm not sure from your example whether you're okay with the boss firing a worker who continues to make public, anti-gay statements off the clock. If so, the hypocrisy claim stands. At the very least, your "first amendment" warning bells should be clanging in your ears.
We will never win the battle by stifling our opposition, only by changing minds and hearts with good arguments, fair play, and positive role models in everyday life.
Posted by: A Different View | Jan 31, 2007 4:30:05 PM
What if the guy's web page had said "gays should be stoned to death, just like in the Bible"? Should the employer have the right to fire? Let's make it simple and assume he has no co-workers, gay or straight. Remember, the guy is a media personality, a radio host. In a real sense, he represents his organization to his listeners. For this very reason, major league baseball teams sanction their players for public statements of far less vitriol.
Posted by: A Different View | Jan 31, 2007 4:53:15 PM
Texas is an at-will state and technically employers can terminate an employee without a specific cause. That being said, "sexual orientation" is not included in discrimination clauses in a lot of employer anti-discrimination policies, nor is it included in city, county, state policies.
Firing someone for being gay is an employer's perogative (wrong though it may be). But, as a semi-public figure if you were using MySpace to troll for sex or talk about sexual exploits, gay or straight, it's probably inappropriate.
Posted by: Charlie | Jan 31, 2007 7:25:47 PM
Hopefully, all the god fearing A-holes who fired a man for being honest will die horrible deaths breathing the coal cancer contaminated swill that bush,delay&co's legacy have left to this state that was stolen from Mexico!VIVA ZAPAPATA !!!!
Posted by: kent | Jan 31, 2007 7:29:46 PM
Well, A Different Light, I guess this should teach us all, when we're doing hypotheticals don't use real people. Also, no I don't think someone who is homophobic on their off hours should be fired. I've worked with people who I'm sure thought I was going to Hell--but it didn't come up at work so it wasn't an issue. If they express opinions I don't like on their websites I would probably never know because I didn't read their websites. If it doesn't come into the workplace it doesn't effect the workplace--if it does then it's a different story. If I went around starting fights with homophobic co-workers or deliberately provoking them I would expect to be fired as well.
Posted by: Daniel | Jan 31, 2007 8:01:35 PM
This is unbelievable!! We're talking about a freaking DJ here..from an FM radio. Young, hip, top 40 fluffyfull. What's the deal?
This makes me think: I'm on myspace as well, and all the time I encounter profile pages that make me wonder if anyone from this current young generation is ever thinking about holding law or office positions? esp with all the sexual stuff they put out there & the "would you make out with the person above" orgy threads they participated in. - Cause with the net, once that info is out there it's cached, archived and often irretrievable.
I think laws on what is acceptable or not to do on the net will need to be redefined considerably, or else nobody will ever be employable in the future.
Posted by: Da | Jan 31, 2007 10:35:41 PM
DA: Nobody will be employable? How is that going to work? If everyone is guilty then nobody is guilty I should think.
Posted by: anon | Jan 31, 2007 10:47:26 PM
Anon, that's the point I was trying to make..if pretty much everyone is a 'myspace whore', or at the very least has a few friends leaving them sexy pictures as messages, then employers might as well start considering what people do there as "private life".
more on myspace whoring culture (friendwhores, camwhores, etc)
http://tinyurl.com/8ggon
Posted by: Da | Jan 31, 2007 11:41:00 PM
he should just get hired at a rival radio station and take all his listeners with him. ring the alarm. make some noise. do interviews. write editorials. whatever it takes to bring this discrimination to the masses. silence = complicity
Posted by: sean | Jan 31, 2007 11:46:31 PM
At will does not mean you can be let go for *any* reason. Those reasons cannot violate local, state, and federal ordinances...
Posted by: sam | Jan 31, 2007 11:53:16 PM
It's Texas. It's amazing they do this while they are ok with illegals coming in. AMAZING!
Posted by: Jack! | Feb 1, 2007 8:57:03 AM
This is not surprising coming from Texas. Texans, in general (there are a FEW exceptions) are arrogant, self important idiots with an inflated sense of self worth. They think an accident of birth makes them superior to the rest of the world. If Texas is so great, why do most of hem come to New Mexico to ski, etc? At least our state has laws protecting GLBT people from this kind of discrimination. Instead of building a fence between the US and Mexico, I wish they would build one between Texas and New Mexico!!
Posted by: New Mexican | Feb 1, 2007 9:34:42 AM