Weatherman under fire for remarks at LGBTQ conference
The journalists in the ballroom had spent an extended weekend learning why, exactly, Marshall McPeek should not have said what he said.
So it was no surprise that his attempt to open his volunteer emcee gig this past weekend with a joke landed with a thud, then sparked anger that caused people to storm out of the closing ceremonies of the national convention for NLGJA: The Association of LGBTQ Journalists.
McPeek, a weatherman for Sinclair Broadcast Groupowned WSYX (Channel 6) and WTTE (Fox Channel 28) in Columbus, started the ceremony in Palm Springs, California, by welcoming “ladies and gentlemen, things and its” — something that critics took as a derogatory reference to the transgender and noncisgender people in the suddenly outraged audience.
The quip was especially jarring because NLGJA has been trying to be “an inclusive organization for transgender and nonbinary audiences.” Hours before McPeek took the microphone, the group’s conference had hosted a diversity and intersection workshop to report on “often-ignored communities with greater sensitivity and understanding.”
By the end of Saturday night, McPeek was no longer a member of the association of LGBTQ journalists, resigning the membership he’s held since 1995.
NLGJA, facing criticism that it doesn’t do enough to address the needs of the entire LGBTQ community, extended an apology of its own the next day, saying it was sorry for “an inappropriately, unscripted remark that does not reflect our values.”
Late Tuesday, McPeek released a statement on Twitter, his first public statement about the incident since it happened Saturday.
“As a gay man, I have been on the receiving end of hateful words and judging glances, especially while being ‘out’ in a high-profile position in television news,” he wrote. “So I am especially saddened by the irony that my poor choice of words has hurt others in the same way.”
But attendees and others across the nation were still livid days later.
“It is technically, factually literally dehumanizing language. And it is mired in an intense history of prejudice against transgender people,” one conference attendee told The Washington Post, saying she did not want her name used in an article that could be critical of NLGJA. “It’s a specifically nonhuman way in McPeek which trans people are dehumanized every day.”
McPeek declined to comment for this story. He directed the Washington Post to a Facebook post by one of his WSYX colleagues, Monica Day. She called McPeek an “ADVOCATE for ALL in the LGBTQ community.” She said McPeek had made the “things and its” comment before, and it was never taken as an insult.
But Tony D’Angelo, general manager for Sinclair Broadcast Group stations in Columbus, said: “Marshall McPeek’s inappropriate remarks at the NLGJA convention were hurtful and offensive and we condemn them to the highest degree.
“We understand Marshall appropriately returned to the stage to apologize and resigned his membership with NLGJA,” D’Angelo added. “Marshall’s comments in no way reflect the values of Sinclair Broadcast Group. We are an inclusive workplace that prides itself on all employees feeling comfortable and welcome. Sinclair has supported the important work of NLGJA and its member journalists and we were saddened by his comments.”
D’Angelo did not say whether the station would take disciplinary action against McPeek. “We do no comment on personnel matters,” said Jamie Justice, news director for WSYX and WTTE.