Axios Axes Reporter After DeSantis Tweet

FL Governor DeSantis, Ben Montgomery

Axios parted ways with reporter Ben Montgomery after he referred to a roundtable event hosted by Gov. Ron DeSantis, R-Fla., as "propaganda."

"This reporter is no longer with Axios. Out of respect for our employees, we do not discuss conditions of departure," Axios editor-in-chief Sara Kehaulani Goo told Fox News Digital. 

Alex Lanfranconi revealed how the Tampa Bay reporter responded to an emailed press release regarding a roundtable discussion on "divisive concepts such as Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives, Critical Race Theory (CRT) and the impact that these concepts have had on Florida higher education institutions and the students that attend them."

In a reply, Montgomery wrote back "this is propaganda, not a press release."

This afternoon, Tampa based @axios journalist @gangrey decided to respond to our press release with the below. pic.twitter.com/XkL5nBwZSs

— Alex Lanfranconi (@AlexLanfran) March 13, 2023

Lanfranconi shared a screenshot of the response on social media, prompting the liberal reporter to face swift backlash from the right. But it seems backlash on Twitter isn’t the only thing Montgomery had to deal with as a result of his actions. 

Vanity Fair reporter Charlotte Klein first tweeted that Axios fired Montgomery on Monday over the incident. Montgomery publicly confirmed and appeared to make light of the situation. 

Montgomery told Fox News Digital that he didn’t diss the press release because of partisan politics, but instead because he felt it lacked necessary context.

However, after being fired without warning, Montgomery admitted he could have better articulated his problem with the press release.