Recording Academy fires Deborah Dugan

The Recording Academy, best known for its Grammy Awards, announced Monday that it has fired its former president and chief executive officer, Deborah Dugan.

The Recording Academy sent a letter to its members Monday informing them of the action which was taken by its Board of Trustees.

CNN was also provided a copy of the letter.

“As you know, Deborah Dugan has been on a paid administrative leave of absence since January 16, 2020,” the letter began. “We are writing to let you know that, earlier today, the Board of Trustees voted to terminate Ms. Dugan’s employment as President/CEO of the Recording Academy.”

Dugan’s attorneys, Douglas H. Wigdor and Michael J. Willemin, provided a statement to CNN regarding her termination.

“The Academy’s decision to terminate Ms. Dugan and immediately leak that information to the press further demonstrates that it will stop at nothing to protect and maintain a culture of misogyny, discrimination, sexual harassment, corruption and conflicts of interest,” the statement read. “The decision is despicable and, in due course, the Academy, its leadership and its attorneys will be held accountable under the law.”

“I was recruited and hired by the Recording Academy to make positive change; unfortunately, I was not able to do that as its CEO,” Dugan said in a statement Monday. “So, instead of trying to reform the corrupt institution from within, I will continue to work to hold accountable those who continue to self-deal, taint the Grammy voting process and discriminate against women and people of color. Artists deserve better. To me, this is the real meaning of “stepping up.””

Dugan filed a lawsuit against the Recording Academy in January, alleging she was wrongfully fired after raising allegations of sexual harassment and irregularities with Grammy nominations.

The lawsuit, filed with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), came just days before the group’s Grammy Awards and days after Dugan was put on leave for what the Academy called “misconduct.”

Dugan says she was put on administrative leave three weeks after she sent an email to the Academy’s managing director of human resources in which she outlined numerous bombshell allegations against the organization and its “historically male dominated leadership,” according to the EEOC complaint.

“The decision to put Ms. Dugan on leave was clearly made in retaliation for her complaint, and came with thinly veiled threats of termination in the event that Ms. Dugan persisted in pursuing claims against the Academy,” the lawsuit said.

The lawsuit also claimed Dugan was subjected to sexual harassment.

Dugan also alleges she was pushed out after raising concerns about various “irregularities and conflicts” with the Academy’s nomination and review process, and that she discovered numerous conflicts of interest made possible by the “boys’ club mentality.”

The complaint also includes claims of unlawful gender discrimination, unlawful retaliation, and unequal pay.

The Recording Academy said in a statement to CNN in January that it was “curious” that Dugan didn’t raise the allegations until legal claims were made against her by another employee who alleged she “created a ‘toxic and intolerable’ work environment and engaged in ‘abusive and bullying conduct.'”

After raising her concerns to HR, the academy said, Dugan instructed it not to take any action, but the academy instead launched independent investigations into her allegations — as well as those against her.

“Ms. Dugan was placed on administrative leave only after offering to step down and demanding $22 million from the Academy, which is a not-for-profit organization,” the statement said.

In the letter sent to the membership on Monday it was stated that the decision to fire Dugan was made in part because of “Two exhaustive, costly independent investigations relating to Ms. Dugan and the allegations made against her and by her.”

“These investigations were carried out by experienced individuals with no prior relationship to the Academy, interviewed a combined total of 37 witnesses, and reviewed numerous relevant documents and emails, the letter read. “The investigators were not given any directives about what specifically to investigate or what conclusions, if any, they were expected to reach, and they were not limited by the Academy in terms of what witnesses they could interview or files or documents they could review.”

Harvey Mason Jr., the Recording Academy’s chair and interim chief executive officer, announced a new series of diversity initiatives after Dugan was placed on leave. He said in a statement to CNN that a search to fill Dugan’s position will be initiated.

“As we structure this new search, we will look carefully to see where the last one led us astray and make any necessary changes going forward. Our focus now will be on the transformation agenda we initiated prior to hiring Ms. Dugan, and on working to improve the Academy,” the statement read. “Much of this work has been happening but much of it is yet to come. We realize that we are not perfect, and we will use this moment to reflect on where we can be better, and pledge to realize a future in which our organization is known for its diversity, transparency, creativity, mutual respect, and overall excellence.”