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23 JUN 04: ON THE DEFENDANT'S SIDE?

Today marks the start of depositions in a Columbus federal sex discrimination case which hasn't received much attention. It's against the company which owns WRBL -- so apparently this is one the "Problem Solvers" couldn't resolve.

Former WRBL news producer Melissa Schultz Miller is suing Media General, claiming she faced a "pattern of harassment, discrimination and retaliation" while at "News 3." Some of us are old enough to remember when women "facing a pattern" simply meant sewing your own pantsuit.

Melissa Schultz Miller actually filed suit against Media General last November, but the case apparently has been hiding in the federal courthouse stacks for months. It can't be because the security checks there are tougher than the Government Center -- such as that wand which can scare away ticklish people.

Your blog has examined papers filed by both sides in this sex discrimination suit. Melissa Schultz Miller's initial filing against Media General did NOT specify an amount of damages. But her attorneys probably won't mind if the jury is allowed to read the "Wall Street Journal" during the trial, for some ideas.

Melissa Schultz Miller was hired by WRBL in July 2001. The following April, she told her boss she was pregnant -- and in her view, that's when the trouble started. Well, this WAS before News 3 started showing "Connecting With Kids" reports.

The lawsuit claims former WRBL News Director Mark Wildman barred Melissa Schultz Miller from reporting on-camera during her pregnancy. I'm not sure why this rule was imposed - since no sheriff's office had taser guns back then, to try out on reporters.

I vaguely recall Roslyn Giles remaining on the air on WRBL, during her last pregnancy a few years ago. I certainly recall her having the baby -- which for some reason was the top story in a Sunday night newscast. [True!]

There are other news outlets which have a "no on-camera" rule for pregnant reporters. The most obvious one recently has been "Inside Edition." It kicked Diane McInerney off the air when New York gossip columns reported she was expecting -- on top of me kicking her off my "gorgeous women to meet" list.

It's easy to ask why WRBL wouldn't want a pregnant reporter appearing on-camera. After all, "Will and Grace" was able to shoot around Debra Messing's baby this past season....

Melissa Schultz Miller says she complained to Media General management about all this. But in August 2002, WRBL's Mark Wildman allegedly responded by telling her: "You have to work Sunday night or you will be fired." I've known women over the years who would have chosen that moment for their relatives to get sick.

After taking maternity leave (the suit doesn't say exactly when), Melissa Schultz Miller claims she was "demoted" by WRBL and Media General to "morning show producer." Isn't this a matter of perspective? I've been reading morning newscasts sometimes get better ratings now than the 6:00 p.m. news does.

Melissa Schultz Miller says WRBL promised twice to let her be an on-air reporter, then refused to give her the job. So is this really discrimination? Or did Jessica Clark have someone throw a dart, and it hit another person's resume?

(The lawsuit claims Melissa Schultz Miller was scheduled "to work unfavorable hours." But then again, an all-night shift meant she wouldn't be awakened at 4:00 a.m. by that crying baby.)

Melissa Schultz Miller says she was as qualified to report as other people at WRBL, if not more so. But it may be hard to call that "sex discrimination" - since you can count the number of male TV reporters in Columbus on one hand.

The Media General response to this lawsuit is filled with one word - "denies." In fact, if this company was based in California, it might have a case of West Denial Virus....

The key point for the defense in this lawsuit seems to be whether Melissa Schultz Miller was even promised a reporting position. Media General claims she was hired as a "Producer" - period. Well, at least she lived up to that job. She produced a baby after about a year.

Media General even appears to deny WRBL managers demoted Melissa Schultz Miller to producing the 6:00 a.m. news. That argument might open an even more embarrassing line of questioning - which one of their newscasts actually has the most viewers.

A main character in this sex discrimination lawsuit doesn't work for WRBL anymore. You may recall News Director Mark Wildman was fired last fall [19 Nov 03] -- in fact, within a week after the suit was filed. So was Wildman let go because of this case? Why isn't he specifically named as a defendant? And how many "Wild-man" jokes has he had to face?

Admittedly, time has not permitted us to contact the attorneys handling this suit over the last couple of days. The latest action in the case came last week, when a Virginia lawyer for Media General was removed because he's leaving corporate law. We'll see if "private practice" really means no public-attention lawsuits.

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