The Washington Post Is a Gender Discriminator; Doesn’t Stop It From Shaming Business

The CEO of an Indian consulting company celebrated the company’s 20th anniversary where cake was served. The outcome was more than melted candles; he was charged with gender discrimination.

According to a recent article in the Washington Post, Exlservices general counsel Nancy Saltzman, “a high-ranking lawyer says she was told to serve the cake. She complained, then she was fired.” Because the reporter accepted the plaintiff attorney’s version of the story, we can’t tell if the anecdote is true, half true, or not at all true.

In full disclosure, I previously served as EXLService board chair (why the story caught my eye) although I have not spoken to the CEO in over two decades. What also caused me to take notice was a willingness by the Washington Post to accept allegations made by the client’s attorney, despite an apparent conflict of interest. Traditional media once glared at stories like this with owl-like skepticism, but now feeds on them like a ravenous hyena. Blame it on clickbait headline that finds its way into Twitter and Facebook, then gets shared by the millions. Reporters are coin operated these days.

This is a prime example of why CEOs need to be extra vigilant about documenting their own workplace behavior and policy compliance. Rather than allow a disgruntled senior employee to…