Suspended Grammys CEO fired by Recording Academy
The embattled former CEO of the Recording Academy, the business behind the Grammys, was fired Monday, the most recent development in your body's infighting saga.
The academy announced the termination of Deborah Dugan's contract in a letter, published completely by entertainment news outlet Variety that circulated among the organization's members, citing "consistent management deficiencies and failures." The decision comes just over per month after Dugan was suddenly suspended days prior to the 2020 Grammy Awards show on accusations of misconduct and bullying, and she filed an explosive complaint accusing your body of silencing her concerns over sexual harassment and voting irregularities.
"While I am disappointed by this latest development, I am not surprised given the Academy's pattern of coping with whistleblowers," Dugan said in a statement sent to AFP by her legal team.
"Rather than trying to reform the corrupt institution from within, I will continue to work to carry accountable those who continue steadily to self-deal, taint the Grammy voting process and discriminate against women and persons of color," she continued. "Artists deserve better. If you ask me, this can be a real meaning of 'stepping up.'"
Her last line was a jab at her predecessor Neil Portnow, who in her complaint to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission she accused of raping a foreign female recording artist, an allegation he has flatly denied. Dugan replaced Portnow - who left his position after saying women should "intensify" for industry recognition - last May, becoming the first woman to lead the Recording Academy.
In 2018 the organization created an activity force in response to a significant backlash that the Grammys are consistently too male and too white. Dugan's lawyers, Douglas Wigdor and Michael Willemin, vowed Monday the academy's "leadership and its own attorneys will be held accountable beneath the law."
