Two Cleveland news anchors are now unemployed after they were discovered doing something specifically forbidden by their employer, obtaining Jay-Z tickets.
According to TheRoot.com, news anchor Jackie Fernandez and meteorologist Somara Theodore were terminated from their respective positions at WEWS Channel 5 after they were discovered standing in line during work hours to get free Jay-Z tickets for a get-out-the-vote concert for Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton scheduled for Friday.
Covering the incident during a live broadcast station News Director Jeff Harris said the corporate office takes these occurrences very seriously.
“This happens just as corporate had posted a message on the Scripps in house website, telling employees to be extra careful of not participating in any political activities from now and until the election. . . .”
“We don’t discuss internal employee matters,” news director Jeff Harris said in a statement, Morona reported. “However, News 5 holds all of its journalists to the highest ethical standards.”
“It is important to the reputation of our station and to Scripps, our parent company, that our news coverage is fair and unbiased,” Harris said. “Those crucial qualities have been emphasized repeatedly during this contentious election season.
“We remind our journalists frequently to avoid even the appearance of support for any sides of this election. It is imperative that we maintain objectivity in the work we do to serve our communities in NE Ohio.”
Now the station finds themselves short staff but the anchors have plenty of time to attend the concert.