A radio host has been fired after making comments on the air about a female television anchor at the Washington Commanders training camp Thursday.
WBIG-FM, the radio partner of the Commanders, fired host Don Geronimo after he referred to WUSA-TV’s Sharla McBride as “Barbie,” speculated she was a cheerleader and called her “that chick.”
Geronimo, whose birth name is Michael Sorce, hosted “The Don Geronimo Show” on the station.
“After an internal review, Don Geronimo is no longer an employee of WBIG,” Aaron Hyland, iHeartMedia’s D.C. regional president, told The Washington Post on Saturday night. “We take matters of this nature very seriously and this behavior does not align with our core values.”
After Geronimo’s comments on Thursday, the Commanders banned Geronimo and his producer, Crash Young, from broadcasting from training camp in Ashburn, Va. It was unclear Sunday whether Young is facing any disciplinary action.
The Commanders, through a spokesperson, told The Post that the team was confident station ownership “would address this swiftly and are pleased that they did.”
Geronimo, 64, has worked in the local radio market for “decades,” according to the newspaper.
McBride told The Post she was “incredibly insulted and embarrassed” by the remarks.
“In my 17 years as a professional journalist, I have never been disrespected in such a blatant manner while trying to do my job,” she said in a statement. “Their words were sexist and misogynistic. No woman should experience this in the workplace, and I appreciate the Commanders’ swift response in handling this matter.”
The Commanders, under previous owner Dan Snyder, were the subject of league and federal investigations into allegations of workplace misconduct and sexual harassment.
Snyder finalized the $6.05 billion sale of the team to a group led by Josh Harris on July 20.
Upon the sale, the league fined Snyder $60 million — 1 percent of the sale price — after its investigation found Snyder sexually harassed a team employee and that the team withheld millions of dollars in revenue from other NFL teams.
–Field Level Media
