LES COULD GET $100M PAYOUT
In talks to exit CBS in wake of abuse claims
Les Moonves’ has become America’s most watched TV exec – and his tenure at CBS might be nearing its end.
Moonves is discussing a settlement with the network’s board that would involve him stepping down, CNBC reported. He is accused of sexual misconduct by multiple women,
The board is reportedly willing to give a $100 million package to Moonves, with the bulk of that comprising CBS stock. The 68year-old New York City native is the CEO of CBS Corp., where his annual income reportedly tops $69 million annually.
The company is also seeking the ability to rescind some of that package should an ongoing investigation determine Moonves committed sexual misconduct, according to CNBC.
Joe Ianniello, the company’s COO, would fill the spot vacated by Moonves on an interim basis if the settlement is reached.
CBS declined to comment.
Moonves was accused of misconduct by six women in a report by The New Yorker in late July, and CBS hired a pair of law firms to conduct an outside investigation shortly after.
Four of the women accused Moonves of forcible kissing or touching, while all six said they believed their careers were negatively affected after they rejected his advances.
Moonves has denied those allegations.
The veteran TV exec joined CBS in 1995 and became the CEO of CBS Corp. in 2006, when the branch was created due to Viacom being split into two businesses.
In July, Los Angeles prosecutors announced they were not pursuing charges against Moonves in a sexual abuse case filed in February by a woman who claimed the Hollywood honcho committed three offenses in the 1980s. Prosecutors determined the statute of limitations had passed.
Ronan Farrow, the journalist behind the initial New Yorker report, tweeted at the time that the woman who filed that case was not one of the six women cited in his story.