Former WOBM Reporter Claims Age, Race Discrimination

A veteran radio reporter who covered Ocean County for WOBM for several years has filed a federal lawsui against the station’s parent company claiming age and race discrimination, according to a report.

The Asbury Park Press report says Rosetta A. Key says she was fired in March by Townsquare Media, after at least three other employees who were over 50 also had been terminated.

Key, who started working for the network in 2004 when it was Millennium Radio Group, spent seven years as a reporter and anchor for Star 99.1 Zarephath before she worked for WOBM-FM 92.7, WOBM-AM 1160 and 1310, based in Toms River, as well as 94.3 The Point in Monmouth County, SOJO 1049 and the group’s flagship NJ 101.5 FM, according to the report.

Key, who is black, said her salary had been frozen at $35,000 since 2007 “despite her stellar performance and industry awards.” Her replacement, a younger white woman, was hired as a part-timer in 2013 and quickly rose through the ranks, getting various on-air duties and a salary that surpassed Key’s and the anchor whom she had replaced, according to the report.

In a response filed in federal court, lawyers for Townsquare deny the allegations, although they acknowledge that Key’s salary had been frozen for many years, according to the report.

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