A decade long story has come to an end. Multiple reports indicated that Eddie Berganza’s employment at DC Comics has been terminated. Buzzfeed and The Hollywood Reporter have both confirmed the news and the following statement is also showing up on social media, having been sent to DC’s talent by Diane Nelson:
Warner Bros and DC Entertainment have terminated DC Comics Group Editor Eddie Berganza. We are committed to eradicating harassment and ensuring that all employees, as well as our freelance community, are aware of our policies, are comfortable reporting any concerns and feel supported by our Company.
This current action spun out of a Buzzfeed article which featured sexual harassment allegations against Berganza dating back to 2006. That article was published Friday, Berganza was announced as suspended Saturday evening and on Monday afternoon he’s terminated. This is a very quick change of heart of DC, when you consider the last reported incident being referenced was from 2012, but it would seem that the climate has changed and how the allegations were handled in the past appear to have been reconsidered.
More on this as additional information comes to light.
So why the delayed reaction?
Supposedly Berganza was already reprimanded for his past behavior, sought therapy, and returned to work without further incident-
-but many years later, he’s fired for the exact same incident(s) he’s been reprimanded for.
So the new chic thing to do these days to get fired for something you’ve already been punished for.
Just like that incident with the one network news commentator who got fired for something he did AT ANOTHER NETWORK – which had nothing to do with the behavior he was later employed at.
After the debris has settled, I bet you’re going to see a lot of unlawful termination suits filed in court.
~
Coat
While I’m glad there’s some public comeuppance, firing him should have been the first reaction years ago.
Sadly, other, similar offenders will not get the same fate. Scott Allie? Already quit Dark Horse. Charles Brownstein? Who cans the head of the CBLDF? Etc.
I wonder when this will reach politics? America elected a sexual predator to the White House last year, and Alabama may send an alleged pedophile to the U.S.. Senate.
“America elected a sexual predator to the White House last year”
America elected a sexual predator back in 1993 and then re-elected him. He still remains very popular today.
Cary,
Any unlawful termination lawsuit would go very poorly since any lawyer worth his/her salt could prove women were discriminated against based on gender due to the “no women working in the Superman office” rule.
I’m sure part of the termination paperwork was an agreement Berzanga forfeited his right to sue them.
“I wonder when this will reach politics?”
Um…. no disrespect intended here, but have you watched any news in the past few days?
Good riddance to bad rubbish. I feel sorry for anyone he harassed and all the women denied work due to him only being able to work with men towards the end.
This is such bullshit.
DC is so pathetic they’re retconning their own staffing decisions now.
I presume if those actions now threaten the stability and reputation of the company — even if it was dealt with many years ago — that is justifiable cause for termination. He also was management, so I presume that as long as he is not terminated due to being part of a protected class, he can be terminated at will, even with not reason. DC/WB’s position was likely untenable if they were to keep him on.
Americans KNEW Trump was a predator when they voted for him. And they didn’t care. That’s the difference between Trump and Clinton.
In case you’ve forgotten, Clinton was impeached over his lying about sex. Trump could name Putin his secretary of state and he won’t be impeached. Not as long as his party controls Congress.
“Um…. no disrespect intended here, but have you watched any news in the past few days?”
Just because people are talking about Roy Moore’s taste for teenagers doesn’t mean anything will be done about it. I used to live in Alabama, and I can tell you they’d rather have a pedophile than a Democrat in the Senate.
“I presume if those actions now threaten the stability and reputation of the company — even if it was dealt with many years ago — that is justifiable cause for termination.”
So we’re replacing the tyranny of the sexual predator with the tyranny of bad press?
This is considered progress? Has everyone forgotten that two wrongs don’t make a right? “Here’s your punishment as long as nobody makes a big deal about it”?
Just so I’m not misunderstood-and I’m sure someone will make the effort to do so anyway, I’m not saying that his actions don’t warrant this punishment. I’m saying that bad press doesn’t warrant this punishment.
This tyrannical political correctness has to stop.
“This tyrannical political correctness has to stop.”
Um, no it does not. Just cause you’re getting nervous doesn’t mean what needs to be done has been done.
But I do love all those folks here talking about “wrongful termination” and the “tyranny of bad press”. You are soooo cute!!! 49 states have At Will employment. Absent a contract, your employer can axe you any time its little heart desires. You’re on your own out there; act accordingly.
While this is a good start, the enablers need to account for their actions. Why do Didio, Harras, Johns, etc. still have jobs?
Eggbert, just because it’s the way it is doesn’t make it right. This rampant lack of sympathy for anyone that doesn’t fit into your small window of approved behavior is a pandemic that needs a cure.
You know what’s “cute”? Thinking you’re above it all.
Finding pleasure in the misfortune of others makes you a bad person even if they are deserving of that misfortune.
About time.
UPDATE: About damn time.
“Americans KNEW Trump was a predator when they voted for him. And they didn’t care. That’s the difference between Trump and Clinton.
In case you’ve forgotten, Clinton was impeached over his lying about sex. Trump could name Putin his secretary of state and he won’t be impeached. Not as long as his party controls Congress.”
—
And by 1996 Americans knew Clinton was an alleged predator when they voted to keep him in the oval office and to this day, despite all of his other predatory behavior that has come to light, they still worship the guy.
Not sure why you’re bringing up the impeachment of Bill Clinton (of course it was about the lying under oath — the lying which was a result of his predator-like behavior).
“alleged predator”
Key word being alleged. He has never been tried nor convicted of any sex-related crime. The allegations didn’t cost him his job as President nor should any allegations cost anyone any job ever.
Innocent until proven guilty is also an idea that has seemingly been forgotten in this country.
Also, wrongful termination is covered if you’re fired from an at will job due to retaliation which this most definitely is. Retaliation for appearing in a news item which makes the company look bad. I’m with the plaintiff on this one.
Sorry, I’m having a brain cramp and I don’t remember, but why did Americans know Clinton was a sexual predator by 1996?
After Berganza made the cover of the N.Y. Daily News last weekend, along with such esteemed gentlemen as Harvey Weinstein, Brett Ratner, Kevin Spacey and Louis C.K., it was only a matter of time before he was canned.
I can imagine how Warner execs reacted to that front page. This is the sort of PR disaster no corporation wants.
There will come a day to worry about men being treated unfairly on matters of sexual harassment but it is not this day. You can’t make an omelet without breaking a few eggs and the culture of power and sexual misbehavior needs to be broken.
And just so everyone is clear…
Bill Clinton had been publicly accused of rape when he was wildly cheered at the 2000 Democratic National Convention. He was still a publicly alleged rapist when he was wildly cheered at the 2004 DNC. And again in 2008. And 2012. And 2016. And not one single Democrat, NOT ONE, expressed any concern at all over making a possible rapist the First Gentleman of the United States.
Stop with the nonsense. If DC should’ve fired Berganza long ago, Democrats should have stopped applauding Bill Clinton long before that.
Mike
Most of these guys deserve to be out on their asses. But I think Amazon might have overreacted in firing executive Roy Price over one incident of crudely hitting on a female producer. That took place at a booze-soaked social event (a party at Comic-Con). And there’s been no allegation that he tried to retaliate against her for rejecting him.
Sex talk and physical contact are never appropriate at work. But outside the office, things get fuzzier.
“And not one single Democrat, NOT ONE, expressed any concern at all over making a possible rapist the First Gentleman of the United States.”
Probably because they didn’t take seriously conspiracy theories hatched in the National Inquirer and the Sean Hannity show.
Amazing that there are men complaining about the timeliness of the firing. “But he was already lightly reprimanded for his behaviour – hasn’t he suffered enough?”
The reason there seem to have been no further complaints is because he was sequestered away from all women. That’s a ludicrous situation if he feels, or his bosses feel, he can’t control himself.
As for wrongful dismissal, one comment above was right – the women could complain about a continued hostile workplace. Also, he’s presumably an executive grade, which means he can be fired for simply making the company look bad.
He did. He got fired. Like he should have been years ago.
“America elected a sexual predator back in 1993 and then re-elected him. He still remains very popular today.”
That’s funny, the president America elected in 1988 is in the headlines now for being a sexual predator.
Fair and balanced.
“Probably because they didn’t take seriously conspiracy theories hatched in the National Inquirer and the Sean Hannity show.”
You know who thinks the PUBLIC rape accusation against Bill Clinton is credible? Chris Hayes at MSNBC. You know who else thought it was credible? The late Tim Russert, then host of “Meet the Press” on NBC.
Before you cast aspersions on others, make sure to examine your own ignorance.
Mike
Instead of arguing over which party has the most rapist presidents, why not discuss ways to prevent this from happening again?
#manfail
Forget politics. If the hundreds of stories circulating around about the WWE for decades have any grain of truth to them, Vince and company have a LOT to worry about these days.
“Instead of arguing over which party has the most rapist presidents, why not discuss ways to prevent this from happening again?”
It’s not preventable unless you segregate men and women, and then you would also have to segregate homosexuals within their respective genders as well.
Every company has rules against sexual harassment. There are laws against sexual assault. Sexual misconduct is a vague buzzword. Allegations of this nature are hard to prove. There is a misconception that multiple allegations lend credence to the validity of those allegations. Freelancers only have protection against these situations in certain states because sexual harassment doesn’t apply to independent contractors. Using the press is only for character assassination and to make companies look bad. Here’s why it works now more than before: Companies care less about their employees now than ever before. Companies only care about their stock price which is affected by its public perception. You think that because a few shitty men are getting some payback because of some news articles that this is progress, but it’s in fact proof that people are even more powerless than ever before. I know you don’t see it right now because you’re blinded by self-righteous indignation which is why I’ve made an effort to point it out. The lynch mob has found a new home.
You’re all actively participating in proving that perception is all that matters. Truth is irrelevant whereas it used to be that truth will out. You’re not on the right side here; you’re part of the problem.
Do I care that Eddie Berganza lost his job? Nope. Do I care that Eddie Berganza loses his job the right way? Hell Yes, and this isn’t it.
“15 per cent of couples meet through work”–just throwing that out there.
It’s disturbing how little people care about the details of these accusations and how disinterested most people are in following up with questions for all involved parties to get at the truth of the situation. It’s like anything beyond 140 characters is too much for you to process these days.
The fact is that as long as women are willing to offer themselves up to get ahead in this world men will continue to make those requests. Everybody loves to scapegoat because it’s the easiest laziest way to move on to the next thing. Typical mob mentality.
“Instead of arguing over which party has the most rapist presidents, why not discuss ways to prevent this from happening again?”
One way is to make sure we don’t treat this as a partisan issue and, to be perfectly honest, it’s going to be very hard to do that with a generation of people out there who’ve been raised to believe Bill Clinton was just this charming rogue who harmlessly seduced women. The truth about such “charming rogues” is usually a lot more sordid.
There’s a bunch of people in Alabama who are still willing to vote for Roy Moore, even after fairly credible allegations that he, when he was in his 30s, used to target teens for his sexual attentions. I will bet you $100 their #1 excuse for not caring about the allegations against Moore is because Democrats didn’t care about the allegations against Bill Clinton.
Here’s a link to a New York Times opinion piece about the Clinton problem. I’m not sure how we deal with it but I am sure flushing it down the memory hole is not an option.
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/11/13/opinion/juanita-broaddrick-bill-clinton.html?rref=collection%2Fsectioncollection%2Fopinion&action=click&contentCollection=opinion®ion=rank&module=package&version=highlights&contentPlacement=5&pgtype=sectionfront&_r=0
Wow, the right-wingers are coming out of the woodwork here.
I guess ranting about Bill Clinton — who left the White House almost 17 years ago — is easier than defending the incompetent and morally dubious people in your own Republican Party (a.k.a. the Party of Trump).
No comments about our current Harasser/Groper-in-Chief? Guess not.
I will say that about a decade ago, I stopped going to “office parties” where booze was flowing and co-workers of the opposite sex were present. I saw too many people — not just men, but also women — get in trouble for drinking too much and getting too free with their hands and lips at these bashes.
I was afraid I might have one drink too many and say or do something I would regret. It can happen to anyone.
What this comes down to is whether DC/WB was willing and able to defend this man given the current environment. I am sure this was discussed with their counsel and risk advisers. Is this the hill you would want to die on/defend? And who would want to be the person in the company willing to make this defense? From a business standpoint, much easier to terminate/rip off the bandaid rather than let it drag out by taking the effort to parse this and defend the decision to keep him at his post, and risk your business interests. Some people may think this is some sort of corporate cowardice and I’m sure there is to that extent; but perhaps there was also some people who thought it was the right thing to do, even at this late date — it is also a statement to their employees that they have finally “listened” and will not tolerate such behavior.
And don’t mix up legal standards with work place standards. Again, a company has a right to terminate at cause; a person doesn’t necessarily need to be found legally guilty to be let go. And if the person wants to challenge that, they can go to court.
“The fact is that as long as women are willing to offer themselves up to get ahead in this world men will continue to make those requests. Everybody loves to scapegoat because it’s the easiest laziest way to move on to the next thing. Typical mob mentality.”
Wow. Here we are, blaming the victim again. To me, such a worldview is similar to why women in some cultures are forced to wear burkas — because men believe they are not responsible for their own actions.
I have worked in a professional work environment my whole career (going on 30 years), working with women, as co-workers, subordinates and as supervisors. It’s not very hard to work in such an environment and keep out of trouble. It’s just a matter of respecting other people and understanding professional boundaries in the workplace.
But a lot of what we have been seeing has nothing to do with male-female relationships and often not even about looking for romance (or sex). It’s about exerting power. He was in a position of power who tried to exploit it to his own advantage/benefit.
Heidi MacDonald said: “Instead of arguing over which party has the most rapist presidents, why not discuss ways to prevent this from happening again?”
Heidi, you’ve spent over 30 years associating with people in the comics industry. What are your solutions?
I’ll tell you where you won’t find solutions: the nuance-free world of Twitter. Most of the comments there depict all men as evil brutes and all women as helpless victims in need of protection, like Victorian-era damsels in distress. I’ve been groped and propositioned by women in bars and at parties — sometimes by women I’d just met — so I can tell you this sort of behavior is not exclusive to males.
What guys need to keep in mind is that most (but not all) men have greater physical strength than women, so hitting on a woman who’s not interested can seem threatening, in a way that a woman hitting on an uninterested guy rarely is. If she doesn’t act interested, forget it and walk away. Don’t be a persistent jerk.
“Here we are, blaming the victim again.”
The go-t0 argument for those incapable of making a case against someone that doesn’t support the victimization lynch mob.
Here’s where you’re wrong: 1. There’s no victim my statement that you quoted. 2. I spent many words on how placing blame is everyone’s new favorite easy lazy pastime and the wrongness of that.
Adults make adult decisions. Requesting sexual favors as a form of alternative payment isn’t always illegal. It’s pretty much always inappropriate, though, but I try not to be judgemental.
Deflecting culpability and blame is also another quite popular leisure activity, which is understandable considering how the placing of said blame is the #1 activity. We’re all victims of circumstance, and we’re all partially to blame for those circumstances. This is not meant to excuse anyone’s behavior because it says very clearly WE and ALL which is universally inclusive. Not taking responsibility for your own actions is the first response when things go wrong. This is also understandable because everything happens TO us in the moment and it’s only by reasoned reflection that most of us can see where we went wrong, but we can never admit it to anyone because public opinion turns on a dime and then we’re the ones being scapegoated. This is what happens when rumors get reported as facts, and accusations are automatically accepted as truths. #FakeNews #ProveIt
I just re-read the buzzfeed article, and it’s amazing how after every detailed incident it says “did not report” at the end. The only time anyone reported anything was after he got a promotion. You DO realize what that looks like, right? Sour-grape-fueled witch hunt. The article also says that he only gave his mea culpa and received his reprimand after bleeding cool named him. So nobody reported it, He said he was sorry, He received a punishment, and has since been on his best behavior as far as anyone knows. “BUT people are talking about it again so you’re fired.” And so many people are cool with this…
Bunch of savages.
I might take the “witch hunt” claims more seriously if even one woman called this a witch hunt.
“Requesting sexual favors as a form of alternative payment isn’t always illegal. It’s pretty much always inappropriate, though, but I try not to be judgemental.”
If we’re talking about the porn industry, sure. People are often paid with cocaine in porn, in exchange for sexual favors. I don’t think that’s how it works at DC Comics.
I love how upset the misogynists are.
At DC Comics, you’re usually paid in comps, George.
~
Coat.
“I love how upset the misogynists are.”
I love how many people who use the word misogynist don’t know what the word means and use it incorrectly. Seems to correlate to the number of people who fail reading comprehension and science reasoning education courses.
“If we’re talking about the porn industry, sure.”
Nope. Real everyday situations where sexual harassment and prostitution definitions don’t apply. I don’t make the rules. I just share my google research for your benefit. You know of research? That thing real journalists used to do before they succumbed to producing nothing but pandering clickbait bullshit.
Eddie Berganza should have known better than to behave the way he did, but he also shouldn’t have had his second chance stolen from him by a trendy news item and the disproportionate online response to it.
” just share my google research for your benefit. ”
Wow, if you found it on the internet, it MUST be true!
I love how all I said was “I love how upset the misogynists are” and I Am Jack immediately thought it was about him. Misogynist confirmed.
I love how skip proves my point about reading comprehension by assuming that people who respond to a comment must be representative of the subject said comment is discussing. Skip also proves my point about the word misogyny and its variations by having no clue how to confirm its existence.
“if you found it on the internet, it MUST be true!”
Unlike skip, I’m aware of how you determine the veracity of something, and that simply being on the internet isn’t part of the process. So to help you to better understand the situation, I’ll break it down for you–It’s true, AND it’s on the internet. Being snarky online about someone else’s research is SO much easier than doing your own, isn’t it.
Berganza was sequestered away from women at the company. This prevented women from procuring certain gigs and books. This was an untenable situation and absurd. Women couldn’t get certain books because they couldn’t trust him to not harass them. THEY got reprimanded and held back for HIS problems.
That’s certainly one way of looking at it. The other is that once he was openly reported as having done something objectionable he was demoted and since then “No new allegations involving him have surfaced since the 2012 WonderCon incident.” The situation was handled, but certain people couldn’t stand to see him remain employed as other people that they liked lost jobs instead. Cut to now where beating a dead horse in the press cost him his job. Not new violations, not old violations that have only now come to light, and not a blatant disinterest in changing his behavior…no, just bad press. RIDICULOUS.
Misogynists gonna misogynise.
Comments are closed.