Former Pop TV head Brad Schwartz has left Audible after less than a month as chief creative officer after employees discovered a 2018 lawsuit that included accusations that Schwartz fostered a toxic work environment at the cable network.
According to Bloomberg News, Audible employees found a sexual harassment lawsuit filed in February 2018 against Pop Media Group, Lionsgate and CBS by one of Pop TV’s sales VPs. Schwartz was not listed as a defendant but was included in a series of alleged incidents of misconduct experienced by the plaintiff at the network.
The lawsuit accused Schwartz of demeaning a female sales executive when she objected to a press release sent by the network that included the headline “Pop Puts Out.” He was also accused of yelling out, “I may or may not have slept with her in college!” in reference to a keynote speaker at a national women’s empowerment conference.
While the lawsuit was later withdrawn, its accusations led Audible execs to reconsider keeping Schwartz on as CCO. Schwartz, who had overseen the development of Pop TV’s acclaimed comedy “Schitt’s Creek” and the pickup of Netflix’s “One Day at a Time,” had jumped to Audible after the Viacom-CBS merger prompted widespread layoffs across several networks owned by the companies, including Pop TV.
Representatives for Audible did not immediately respond to TheWrap’s requests for comment.