Cleared to Work, But Will Anyone Call?

Taryn Asher has scored a legal victory in her battle to get out from under her non-compete agreement following her high-profile ouster from WJBK (Detroit). But while she is now technically legally free to take a job elsewhere in broadcasting, a much bigger question remains for news directors across the country: Does anyone actually want to hire her?

Asher made national headlines after being caught on camera during a public service announcement recording session launching into a cuss-laden, hot-mic tirade. The video—which captured her calling a colleague a "bitch," dropping F-bombs, and fuming about someone "telling on me every five seconds"—quickly went viral and added fuel to her ongoing federal lawsuit against Fox Television Stations alleging sex discrimination and retaliation.

While Asher’s legal team successfully carved out a path for her to return to work, the viral footage and the station's heavy pile of allegations regarding "confrontational and disrespectful interactions" with colleagues, shouting matches over assignments, and repeated newsroom outbursts have been broadcast far beyond the Motor City.

In an industry where optics, team chemistry, and newsroom morale are constantly under the microscope, station management vetting a high-profile anchor is going to have to weigh the ratings potential against the massive baggage. Winning a courtroom battle to clear a non-compete is one thing; overcoming a viral, expletive-filled audition tape that plays on loop across the internet is an entirely different hurdle.

Will a news director be willing to roll the dice on an anchor whose off-camera studio meltdowns are a matter of public record? In television, stranger things have happened, but don't expect a line of local news managers rushing to hand over the desk keys just yet.

Just saying…