A meteorologist has filed a lawsuit against KCBS-KCAL, the CBS duopoly in Los Angeles, claiming he was passed over for jobs because he is not a young, attractive woman.
Kyle Hunter has worked as a meteorologist at several California stations, including KMIR in Palm Springs and KEYT in Santa Barbara, according to his bio. Most recently, he was a freelance meteorologist at KSWB in San Diego.
The Hollywood Reporter has details of the lawsuit:
Hunter claims he learned in 2010 that KCBS’ longtime weatherman Johnny Mountain would not have his contract renewed, so he informed the station that he would like to be considered for the job. But according to the complaint, the station wasn’t interested in him and instead brought in a younger female, despite Hunter being “far more qualified, and far more experienced, [than] the female hired to replace Mr. Mountain.”
The woman that replaced Mountain was brought in from KCAL, according to the suit, so Hunter assumed a position would be open at KCAL. But again he was turned down and the job went to a younger woman, “whose age and gender were key considerations in the hiring decision,” he claims. The female hired didn’t even have a certification from the American Meteorological Society (Hunter does).
Hunter, who is represented by Gloria Allred, says he asked a manager at KCAL why he had not been considered for the job. He was told the station had a lot of male viewers and he “wouldn’t be the type men would want to look at,” according to the complaint. Hunter is seeking unspecified damages.
A CBS spokesperson told TVSpy the lawsuit “is frivolous and based on gross misstatements of fact.”