Ex-anchor Sonya Heitshusen loses discrimination lawsuit against WHO TV parent company

WHO-13 was not motivated by discrimination when it laid off its oldest female news anchor in 2020, a jury has decided.

Sonya Heitshusen, now 56, sued WHO owner Nexstar Media, News Director Rod Peterson and General Manager Bobby Totsch in 2021 and alleged age and gender discrimination. The case went to trial last week, and on Wednesday, the jury found for the station.

The verdict came after closing arguments in which Heitshusen's attorney, Lawrence Dempsey, asked jurors to award her more than $1.5 million in damages, including $92,863 in back pay, $800,000 for emotional distress and $650,000 in future emotional damages. Dempsey accused the station of terminating the longtime anchor because it wanted younger, prettier talent in front of the cameras.

"She dedicated her life to speaking truth to power. Despite her dedication, Nexstar, Peterson and Totsch ended her career," Dempsey said. "It was a plan that involved bringing on the cool kids and Ms. Heitshusen was not part of that plan."

Station executives argued throughout the trial that Heitshusen was let go as part of broader layoffs based on her higher compensation and less-essential work duties than those of other anchors. Nexstar attorney Chris Hoyme told jurors in his closing arguments that, from the company's perspective, the case was "common sense."

"This case is about dollars and cents. You’ve heard testimony from various witnesses, including Bobby Totsch, that he selected Ms. Heitshusen for the reduction in force because she made a lot of money, $120,000, and her role was redundant," Hoyme said. "... By making that selection, he was able to keep several other employees. That’s it. It’s not a Hollywood story, it’s not a courtroom drama, it might be kind of boring, but that’s what happened."

Dempsey told jurors that Heitshusen consistently received better performance reviews than other male and female WHO anchors and reporters. He pointed to station documents preceding her 2020 termination touting the station's "hip young relatable talent," and that in the three years after her departure, WHO hired 12 much younger reporters and anchors, eight of them women.

"That's how they thought they would win over viewers in this market," Dempsey said.

Hoyme also pointed to station employment records to bolster his case. He noted that the 2020 layoff in which Heitshusen was let go covered eight employees, six of them men, ranging in age from their 20s to their 60s.

"Does that sound like sex and age discrimination when you break down the sex and age demographics? Six men, two women, four under age 33," he asked.

WHO's attorney discounts news director's comments

During the trial, Heitshusen and her former co-anchor Erin Kiernan, who is still at the station, testified that Peterson, their direct supervisor, had a pattern of making comments about women's age and weight even before Heitshusen was let go, and that the station had a pattern of doling out recognition and other perks more generously to their male colleagues. Hoyme called those allegations "unsupported" and urged jurors not to "take the bait" and remain focused on the station's business case for the layoffs.

He also sought to poke holes in her case for damages, questioning Heitshusen's therapist's credentials and disputing whether any distress she may have sought treatment for was truly related to her job. And he questioned Heitshusen's claim to be devastated by the loss of her career, saying she'd made no effort to apply for jobs at KCCI, WOI, or in other news markets.

"Frankly, we think the evidence is overwhelming that we don’t even need to talk about damages, but when you talk about emotional distress, it needs to be causally connected to the termination" to award damages, Hoyme said.

Attorney Tom Newkirk, who gave the rebuttal statement for Heitshusen, focused on the bigger picture, accusing WHO and the TV news industry of systemic bias against older female employees.

"It’s only age and gender in this world of news that makes us not see her," he said. "Mr. Totsch did not see her as a main anchor. That’s what this case was about. ... Anyone can be fired, anyone can be laid off. But when it comes to these things (such as gender and age) that we cannot change, the law says, we will protect you."

Heitshusen vows to continue fight; Nexstar says it will continue to follow law

In a statement after the verdict, Heitshusen, now spokesperson for the Iowa State Auditor's Office, thanked her friends, family and attorneys for supporting her.

"I know that any lawsuit carries risk, and I also know that if I hadn't taken this stand, I would have regretted it — letting down myself, my profession and other women who face the same fate," she said.

"I was not the first and will not be the last woman to suffer this fate, but I am not giving up," she said. "I will continue to support my colleagues and other women who face the same age and gender discrimination. The fight is not over."

Gary Weitman, a spokesman for Nexstar, said in a statement the company had been vindicated by the verdict.

“From the beginning of this lawsuit in 2021, we have maintained that Nexstar and WHO-TV acted in good faith in deciding not to renew Ms. Heitshusen’s contract. Today a jury agreed," he said. "We make staffing decisions based on legitimate business reasons in compliance with applicable laws, and we will continue to do so.”

William Morris covers courts for the Des Moines Register. He can be contacted at wrmorris2@registermedia.com or 715-573-8166.

Philip Joens covers public safety, retail, real estate and RAGBRAI for the Des Moines Register. He can be reached at 515-284-8184, pjoens@registermedia.com or on Twitter @Philip_Joens.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Sonya Heitshusen loses WHO 13 discrimination lawsuit against Nexstar