Abby Grossberg, a Fox News producer who has worked with Maria Bartiromo and Tucker Carlson, is now suing the network, claiming that Fox lawyers coerced and intimidated her in preparation for her pre-trial deposition that was part of the ongoing legal battle between Fox and Dominion Voting Systems.
Dominion has filed a $1.6 billion defamation lawsuit against Fox News and Fox Corp, with the voting technology company alleging that during the presidential 2020 election the network “recklessly disregarded the truth” and pushed various conspiracy theories about the company because “the lies were good for Fox’s business.” Fox News has and continues to vigorously dispute Dominion’s allegations.
Grossberg, who has filed two lawsuits against the network, in New York and Delaware, respectively, claims that in September 2022, lawyers forced her to give misleading testimony, coaching her in a way such that she would avoid mentioning the names of prominent on-air talent and male executives, shielding them from any blame when it came to the matter of how Fox News covered false claims about the 2020 election.
She also claims an effort to place blame on her and Bartiromo was rooted in rampant misogyny and discrimination at the company.
The New York Times first reported Grossberg’s lawsuits against Fox News.
During her pre-deposition, Grossberg replied “no” to questions about whether she cared that claims made on Bartiromo’s show were true or false and whether she felt it was important to correct a false claim made on the air.
Concerning the true or false question, Grossberg also added, according to the transcript, “Because we didn’t know if they were true or false at that time.”
She claims she would have answered those questions differently had she not been “coached by and intimidated by” Fox lawyers.
Grossberg’s lawsuit also gave an insight into the workplace atmosphere of Tucker Carlson Tonight, where she worked as a senior booking producer.
Grossberg, who joined the show in 2022, said that on her first day, she discovered that large pictures of former House speaker Rep. Nancy Pelosi wearing a plunging swimsuit decorated the show’s New York office.
She also claimed that during her time there, she was asked by Justin Wells, Carlson’s top producer, whether Bartiromo was in a sexual relationship with current House speaker Rep. Kevin McCarthy and that the staff made jokes about Jewish people and discussed women using a vulgar term.
Additionally, Grossberg claimed that the Tucker Carlson Tonight staff held a mock debate about whether they would prefer to have sex with Republican Michigan gubernatorial candidate Tudor Dixon or her Democratic opponent at that time, current Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer.
Dixon was said to make an appearance on Carlson’s show when the debate was held.
Additional details from the lawsuits show that Grossberg was asked by her superiors at Fox News to cut Bartiromo out of coverage discussions and that these same executives would refer to Bartiromo as a “crazy bitch” who was “menopausal.”
She alleges that after complaining to human resources about sexual harassment from two of her male colleagues, she was told that she was not performing her duties.
For its part, Fox News has filed its own suit against Ms. Grossberg, seeking to enjoin her from filing claims that would provide insight into her discussions with the company’s lawyers.
The company said, “Fox News Media engaged an independent outside counsel to immediately investigate the concerns raised by Ms. Grossberg, which were made following a critical performance review. Her allegations in connection with the Dominion case are baseless and we will vigorously defend Fox against all of her claims.”
Grossberg, according to her lawyer, has been placed on forced administrative leave by the network.