A longtime radio host has been fired from his most recent show after making sexist comments about a TV reporter. On Saturday, iHeartMedia announced that host Don Geronimo (real name: Michael Sorce) was fired from WBIG-FM after comments he made about sports reporter Sharla McBride when they were both covering the Washington Commanders’ training camp. Geronimo’s comments included referring to McBride as “Barbie,” among other things that diminished her status as a fellow reporter.
In addition to iHeartMedia, the parent company of WBIG-FM, confirming Geronimo’s firing, McBride has also spoken out, as has a representative for the football team and Geronimo himself. Read on to find out more.
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As reported by ESPN, while covering the Commanders’ training camp on Thursday, July 27, Geronimo saw McBride and said on The Don Geronimo Show, “Hey look, Barbie’s here. Hi, Barbie girl!” He also said of the reporter for Washington, D.C.’s WUSA-TV, “I’m guessing she’s a cheerleader,” and referred to her as “that chick.”
Fox Sports reported that Geronimo also told his producer, Crash Young, that McBride was the woman Young thought was “tight.” Young reportedly responded, “Yeah. I screamed ‘tight’ when she was…” before the sentence was cut off.
Geronimo has only been hosting The Don Geronimo Show since 2021, but he has a lengthy history in radio across multiple stations. According to Fox Sports, iHeartMedia began a three-year partnership with the Commanders in 2022.
On Saturday, July 29, iHeartMedia announced that Geronimo had been fired over his remarks about McBride.
“After an internal review, Don Geronimo is no longer an employee of WBIG,” Aaron Hyland, the D.C. regional president of iHeartMedia told The Washington Post. “We take matters of this nature very seriously and this behavior does not align with our core values.”
A spokesperson for the Commanders said, “We were confident that iHeart would address this swiftly and are pleased that they did.”
As reported by The Washington Post, prior to Geronimo being fired, the Commanders had already forbade Geronimo and Young from reporting from the training camp on Friday.
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McBride shared a statement with ESPN.
“When I heard the comments made about me on the radio show, I felt incredibly insulted and embarrassed,” she said. “In my 17 years as a professional journalist, I have never been disrespected in such a blatant manner while trying to do my job. Their words were sexist and misogynistic. No woman should experience this in the workplace, and I appreciate the Commanders swift response in handling this matter.”
McBride also posted on her Instagram story about reading comments related to the incident.
“As I sip my Sunday morning coffee, I made the mistake of reading through some of the comments on Twitter,” she wrote. “I am humbled by the 98% of you who hav been nothing short of positive & supportive … To the, shall we say, not so supportive 2%, I have read your comments but know from this moment on, I will forget you exist, and never think of your harsh words again.”
She then pointed out some of the insults that were being directed at her, and added, “Also continuing to call me #Barbie will only get you a laugh & an eye roll.”
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Geronimo posted on Twitter on Sunday that he was “consulting with [his] advisors” regarding the situation
“At this time I will not be providing comment on the events of the last few days,” he wrote. “I am consulting with my advisors as to my options moving forward, including an accurate reflection of the situation. Thx -d.”
Additionally, on Saturday, he told The Washington Post, “Under the advice of my representatives I’ve been advised that I can not comment at this time.”
Best Life has reached out to Young for comment.