Former Fox 4 anchor tacks on age discrimination claim against station and Scripps

Rachel Heimann Mercader, Fort Myers News-Press
Updated ·4 min read

UPDATE: The lawsuit was settled in June 2022. The station and its management were not found liable, according to Scripps company officials.

Jane Monreal, a former WFTX-Fox 4 anchor, has tacked on an age discrimination claim to her federal lawsuit against the Southwest Florida news station and its parent company.

Monreal, who had been a weekday evening anchor and investigative reporter for Fox 4 from 2017 to December 2021, filed her lawsuit in Florida's Middle District Court in January. Among the defendants are Fox 4 Vice President Evan Pappas, and Fox 4's owner Scripps Media, Inc.

The lawsuit cites the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 and race discrimination and retaliation pursuant to Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, alleging the station participated in discrimination and sabotaged her broadcasting career when it terminated her contract soon after she voiced complaints about race discrimination at the news station.

Previous coverage: Former SWFL TV anchor files discrimination lawsuit against Fox4, Scripps Media

Monreal, 51, alleges the discrimination began after WFTX-Fox 4 hired Pappas early last year, three months after the media organization awarded her a three-year employment contract as an anchor/multimedia journalist.

In her supplemental complaint filed on April 6, she says the station and Pappas also "sabotaged her and her older team members by not providing the evening news team with appropriate marketing and support."

At the time of her departure, the evening team was made up of Monreal, chief meteorologist Derek Beasley, meteorologist Cindy Preszler, and anchor Patrick Nolan.

All four were told the station was not renewing or was ending their contracts late last year, court records show.

Monreal is an Asian woman and Beasley is a Black man. Nolan and Preszler are white. All four are older than 40, with Nolan and Monreal being older than 50 and Prezler older than 60.

According to their staff bios, Nolan joined Fox 4 in 2003, Beasley in 2016, and Preszler in 2019.

Monreal, Beasley and Nolan declined to comment. Preszler told the Naples Daily News that she could not comment in compliance with a non-disclosure agreement she has with Scripps.

Monreal is now a weekend evening anchor and a reporter at WCNC Charlotte in North Carolina.

Monreal is seeking a jury trial, which has been tentatively scheduled for December 2023.

By the way, subscribers:

Fox 4 response

Monreal's attorneys filed the supplemental complaint of age discrimination this month, following the dismissal of her complaint with the U.S Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC).

The EEOC based its dismissal of her case on the fact that a lawsuit had already been filed, Kendra Presswood, Monreal's attorney, told the Naples Daily News.

The EEOC then issued a notice of Monreal's right to sue under the age discrimination act. If Monreal had not yet filed a lawsuit, the EEOC would have investigated her claims before making a determination. If the agency had concluded discrimination occurred, it would have attempted to resolve the complaint through conciliation or by filing a lawsuit on behalf of Monreal.

In an email statement issued to the Naples Daily News by the station’s parent company, Scripps, Fox 4 said it denies Monreal's allegations.

"We are aware of the lawsuit. We strongly disagree with the allegations, and we will respond in court, not publicly, for the privacy of everyone involved,” the statement said.

When asked why Fox 4 decided to not renew, or decided to end, its contracts with Monreal, Beasley, Nolan, and Preszler, the station gave the following answer:

"When Scripps bought WFTX in April 2015, WFTX was a fourth-place station. The station spent the next few years adapting to a content strategy and upgrading its newsroom facilities and technology. After some extensive market research in the last year, we determined that the audience in Fort Myers had not developed a loyalty around our news brand. Our goal is to be the No. 1 station in this market, and we decided a fresh start was needed. Those individuals we are replacing worked hard on behalf of this station. Unfortunately, data indicated that the Fort Myers community did not embrace them enough to advance our goals. Scripps and WFTX are committed to being a leading voice in the Fort Myers/Naples communities and serving our audience with essential journalism, meaningful storytelling, and an authentic connection with our viewers."

Connect with Government Watchdog Reporter Rachel Heimann Mercader: racheyy_marie (Twitter) or rachel.heimann@naplesnews.com

This article originally appeared on Fort Myers News-Press: Ex-Fox 4 anchor sues WFTX-Fox 4 over age discrimination