Interview With Joel Connable
On April 27th, Joel Connable was dismissed from WTVJ with a sea of controversy and questions following soon behind him. After much persistence, I had the chance to speak with Mr. Connable and ask him some questions about what happened at WTVJ, and what he’s doing now.
The big news is a lawsuit has been filed against NBC. Gina Cadogan of Schnall and Cadogan is representing him in this case, currently filed in Florida state court. NBC claims Mr. Connable violated NBC policy by accepting a trip free of charge, in exchange for taping a story featuring the Ritz Carlton in St. Thomas. When we asked Connable about the allegations, he said this.
“I did not solicit favors from anybody… and I am truly hurt by the allegations” Connable said.
The lawsuit claims a producer at NBC6 suggested Connable and another NBC employee shoot a story for his travel segment, called “The Departure Lounge,” while they were on the trip. The lawsuit says Connable never agreed to shoot a story and they were all going on a personal trip and not taking any NBC equipment.
According to Connable, he first heard about the allegations from several NBC6 employees who said they were being discussed in the newsroom. That’s when Joel says he went to speak with his news director about the rumors and she explained how shooting a segment on one’s personal time could fall in a gray area.
“After meeting with my news director and listening to her advice, the trip was cancelled because we, obviously, wouldn’t want to do anything that didn’t follow NBC guidelines.”
The lawsuit claims Connable never requested anything for free. It goes on to say that when the public relations director sent Connable’s producer an email offering to cover the cost of flights and rooms, Connable replied that he could not accept anything for free.
Despite this, WTVJ management ultimately made the decision to let him go. Connable’s contract was terminated April 27th, 2009 and a lawsuit was filed soon after for breach of contract. NBC was served this Monday, June 8th. Apparently, there is a special clause in Mr. Connable’s contract that states the following:
“[…] Company may terminate this agreement in the event of artist (Joel Connable) breach of any material representation warranty term or condition of this agreement, provided however, that prior to any termination NBC will provide artist with written notice and give artist opportunity to cure breech, if such cure is timely and possible.“
According to the lawsuit, Connable was never given written notice, nor was he given an opportunity to cure his alleged breach.
Read more @
http://www.sfltv.com/2009/06/10/joelconnableinterview/...just goes to show you a lot of corporates become stupider everyday...
