Comcast Rejects Call For Outside Review of NBC News

Comcast shareholders, led by Chairman Brian Roberts, rejected three proposals from investors, including a demand for an outside investigation into sexual harassment at NBC News, The L-A Times is reporting.

The Philadelphia-based cable giant’s investors also tossed out shareholder requests to detail its lobbying efforts — Comcast spent more than $15 million in lobbying in 2018 — and a proposal that the company’s board be led by an independent chairman. Roberts, the scion of Comcast’s founding family, has served as the company’s chairman and chief executive for more than a decade.

The company conducted its annual meeting of shareholders via webcast Wednesday, rather than the traditional in-person gathering, because of COVID-19 social distancing recommendations.

The 43-minute affair included an array of questions from investors, with a request by an elderly couple for “senior discounts” offered to cable customers nationwide and allegations that certain MSNBC anchors have given tacit support to protesters in some of the violence gripping American cities. Protests have been sparked by the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis in police custody.

“It is truly heartbreaking and tragic that, in 2020, we find our society still struggling with issues that are so core to human dignity. Racism, injustice, violence have no place and cannot be tolerated,” Roberts said. “By and large, I think the coverage continues to inform and educate our society. ... But thank you for your comment.”

However, Wednesday’s forum shone a light on lingering frustration over NBCUniversal’s decision not to seek an independent review of NBC News’ culture following allegations of sexual misconduct by former “Today” show anchor Matt Lauer. NBC’s internal investigation found that management was unaware of allegations of misconduct by Lauer before November 2017.

The review was conducted by NBC legal counsel with assistance from two outside law firms. They concluded that before a woman reported Lauer in November 2017, there hadn’t been complaints to management or human resources regarding the former anchor, who had worked at the network for 23 years.

Other media companies, including CBS Corp. and Rupert Murdoch’s Fox company, quickly turned to outside law firms to investigate allegations of sexual misconduct by high-level employees.