Hadley Gamble, a CNBC anchor and international correspondent, accused former NBCUniversal chief executive Jeff Shell of sexual harassment and sex discrimination in a complaint to the media company, her lawyer told NBC News on Monday.
Comcast, the parent company of NBCUniversal, announced Sunday that Shell was exiting "effective immediately" after an outside legal counsel investigation into "inappropriate conduct." NBC News and CNBC are both units of NBCUniversal.
The corporation did not specify how Shell had violated company policy. In a separate statement, Shell said that he had had an "inappropriate relationship with a woman at the company."
Gamble's claims appear to go further than that characterization. In a statement, Gamble's lawyer, Suzanne McKie, said "the investigation into Mr. Shell arose from a complaint by my client of sexual harassment and sex discrimination."
"Given these circumstances," McKie added, "it is very disappointing that my client’s name has been released and her privacy violated." (Gamble's name was first reported by the entertainment news website Deadline.)
Comcast did not immediately respond to an email requesting comment on the apparent discrepancy in the language used by Shell and Gamble's lawyer.
In a Securities and Exchange Commission document filed on Monday, Comcast wrote: "Following a complaint that Jeffrey Shell, CEO of NBCUniversal, engaged in inappropriate conduct with a female employee, including allegations of sexual harassment, Comcast Corporation (the “Company”) retained outside counsel to investigate the allegations. During the investigation, evidence was uncovered that corroborated the allegations. As a consequence, on April 23, 2023, the Company terminated Mr. Shell’s employment With Cause under his employment agreement, effective immediately."
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Shell did not immediately reply to an email requesting comment on McKie's statement. In the statement he released Sunday, Shell apologized for his conduct and said: "I'm truly sorry I let my Comcast and NBCUniversal colleagues down."
For more on this story, go to NBC News.
