Fired KARE-TV meteorologist Sven Sundgaard lands new job at MPR News

Jan. 11—Former KARE-TV meteorologist Sven Sundgaard has landed a new job at Minnesota Public Radio News in St. Paul.

On Monday afternoon, "Morning Edition" host Cathy Wurzer tweeted congratulations to Sundgaard and said he will join her on the air starting Tuesday: "I'm a long time fan of Sven's. Join us each morning at 7:50 a.m." Sundgaard will also write for MPR News' Updraft weather blog. His first post went live Monday.

KARE fired Sundgaard, who is gay, in May 2020. A Facebook post from the station at the time read: "Due to continued violations of KARE 11's news ethics and other policies, we have made the decision to part ways with Sven Sundgaard."

Last April, Sundgaard filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court against KARE and its parent company Tegna claiming discrimination over his sexual orientation and religious beliefs. The lawsuit includes additional claims of a hostile work environment, defamation and violation of the Minnesota Human Rights Act.

At the time, KARE responded with a statement: "One of our core values as a station is inclusion. We are committed to maintaining a respectful workplace free from all forms of discrimination and harassment."

When Sundgaard appeared on the cover of local LGBTQ magazine Lavender in 2007, he said the news director at the time, Tom Lindner, was irate and asked Sundgaard, "What are people going to think?" Sundgaard said human resources did not follow up on his complaint. After he converted to Judaism, Sundgaard said, news director Jane Helmke asked whether he "still believed Jesus was the Messiah." Sundgaard called the comment "invasive" and said it made him uncomfortable and unsure how to respond.

The lawsuit also details an incident from early 2011 when Lindner allegedly sent Sundgaard "a hostile email regarding a promotional photoshoot Sundgaard had done, copying many coworkers." An open-door meeting with Lindner ended with the news director screaming "Get the (expletive) out of my office," according to Sundgaard, who said that once again a report to human resources went nowhere.

Sundgaard claims that in 2017, management would not approve time off for him to appear as a speaker at a National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association conference or to spend time with his mother, who was in treatment for late-stage cancer, on her birthday. Sundgaard claims he told the news director he was going to take up the issue with Tegna and was told it was a station decision, not a corporate decision. Soon after, Sundgaard said Tegna issued him a warning for insubordinate and unacceptable behavior.

In November 2017, Sundgaard said management issued a written warning about his "poor judgment" for a "sexually loaded" comment he made during a newscast when he said "I guess size really does matter" in response to a news story about whether Minnesota or Wisconsin had more lakes.

According to the lawsuit, Sundgaard reported "similar incidents of differential treatment toward him based, in part, on his sexual orientation and prior reports of discrimination or harassment. No matter how many times he reported, the hostility and differential treatment continued."

Sundgaard is suing for back pay since the day he was fired and up to $25,000 in punitive damages. The suit remains pending, according to federal court records.

Shortly before he was fired, Sundgaard used Facebook to repost a comment from Minneapolis Rabbi Michael Adam Latz that criticized those protesting coronavirus-spurred public health restrictions around the U.S. and compared them to "white nationalist Nazi sympathizer gun fetishist miscreants."

Right-leaning website Alpha News reported on Sundgaard's repost, which led to criticism from former congressman and media personality Jason Lewis, who tweeted "Today's forecast: mostly sunny w/ a chance of idiocy ... #Covid_19 models are about as accurate as his forecasts. @kare11 should fire him!"

News of Sundgaard's departure made national headlines, including coverage from Fox News and the New York Daily News. Locally, social media chatter was largely supportive of Sundgaard, who was born in St. Paul, raised in Cottage Grove and had worked at KARE since 2006.

In August 2020, Sundgaard began producing forecasts for the local news site bringmethenews.com. The site's owner confirmed Sundgaard will continue to contribute to Bring Me The News. Sundgaard also posts regularly to YouTube.