CBS Will Donate $20 Million to Support #MeToo in Wake of CEO Scandal
By Ariella Phillips
Contributor
September 10, 2018 | Read Time: 1 minute
CBS announced Monday it will donate $20 million to women’s groups following the Sunday resignation of CEO Leslie Moonves after sexual-harassment allegations by several women.
According to an SEC filing on Monday, CBS will donate the money to “one or more charitable organizations that support the #MeToo movement and equality for women in the workplace.” The recipients will be chosen by Moonves and CBS.
If he had been fired without cause, Moonves’s severance could have reached $180 million, according to an employment contract he signed in May 2017, CBS News reported.
The SEC filing from CBS put the potential payout at $120 million. Depending on the results on an investigation by two outside law firms, Moonves could receive less.
In a statement, Times Up, the movement against sexual harassment, said: “A $20 million donation is a first step in acknowledging that you have a problem.” It added, “Cleansing the company of this toxic culture demands real systemic change.”
A $20 million donation is a first step in acknowledging that you have a problem, @CBS. But it is far from a solution. You have $180 million set aside to pay Moonves. Use that money instead to help women. Cleansing the company of this toxic culture demands real systemic change
— TIME’S UP (@TIMESUPNOW) September 10, 2018
Allegations against Moonves are not the first to rock the company. Last year, Charlie Rose, a PBS talk-show host and CBS This Morning anchor, was ousted after allegations of inappropriate behavior toward women.
The Chronicle tried to reach CBS on Monday afternoon but has not heard back.
