Globe Files Lawsuit Against Former Employee Accusing Top Editor

BOSTON, MA — The Boston Globe filed a lawsuit against a former employee today who accused the newspaper's top editor of inappropriate comments to her in a text exchange.

Wednesday the Globe reported they were investigating "an inappropriate text exchange" between editor-in-chief Brian McGrory and former Boston.com staffer Hilary Sargent.

The Globe is now asking a judge to order Sargent to cooperate with its investigation, according to the Boston Herald. The suit was filed Friday in Suffolk Superior Court. A hearing for preliminary injunction is scheduled for June 7. McGrory's personal attorney is also accusing Sargent of making "false and defamatory statements" that "are ... actionable," according to a letter that media pundit Emily Rooney posted to social media.

What happened:

Earlier this week Sargent tweeted about an exchange she said happened between her and McGrory and then posted a screen shot of said conversation. In the exchange Sargent seems to be asking for advice on writing and the response that comes back is, "What do you generally wear when you write?"

The post doesn't show the names of the people texting in the screen shot and it's unclear when the texts were sent. And that's what the Globe, and McGrory, say they are trying to figure out.

In a memo sent to employees Wednesday, the Globe's managing director and president said they began investigating the allegation as soon as they found out about it. Linda Henry and Vinay Mehra said they were looking for more context and details about the exchange. The Globe reported a lawsuit might be pending Thursday.

And media pundits and experts in the Boston area say the situation is still confusing and context would be helpful in understanding a fuller picture. McGrory and Sargent both said they dated many years ago, but Sargent said on Twitter they weren't dating when the texts were sent.

McGrory, who has worked at the Globe for nearly three decades, told Globe staff in an email he doesn't remember the exchange and has never harassed Sargent or anyone else. He said he and Sargent have remained friendly over the years, occasionally sending text messages that "included the kind of personal banter of two people very familiar with each other."

Sargent was an editorial assistant for the Globe in 1998 for a year and later worked as both a writer and editor for the Globe-owned Boston.com from 2014 to 2016. She was suspended in 2014 after an incident in which she mocked a story subject in a T-shirt.

"If Brian McGrory truly does not believe he has ever acted inappropriately with anyone at The Boston Globe, then he and I have a remarkably different understanding of what is - and is not - appropriate," she told the Globe.

The accusations come on the heels of the newspaper's initial decision to not name Jim O'Sullivan in an article about sexual misconduct allegations. The decision was then reversed in a letter from McGrory to Globe readers amid the ongoing #MeToo movement in which he apologized for not being more transparent there.

Read the letter from McGrory's personal attorney here:

Previously on Patch:

Editor Of Boston Globe Accused Of Sending Inappropriate Texts

Boston Globe Editor Responds 'I Never Harassed;' Possible lawsuit

Boston Globe Writer Put On Leave Amid Questions Of Accuracy

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