Bosses of world’s largest LGBT news site PinkNews accused of sexual misconduct

2 days ago 6

Getty Images / BBC A composite representation  showing Benjamin Cohen and his hubby  Anthony James successful  achromatic  and achromatic  connected  a acheronian  background, with an abstract inheritance  of neon pinkish  lines with a rainbow motif of horizontal dots conscionable  showing through. There are besides  glimpses of figures texting connected  phones oregon  close-ups of eyes successful  the background. Mr Cohen has acheronian  hair, intimately  cropped astatine  the sides and longer connected  top, stubble, and is wearing a tuxedo with a subtle signifier   of crosses and a silk shirt. Mr James has brownish  hairsbreadth  and a beard, and is wearing an antithetic   high-fastening double-breasted overgarment   with a bold checked pattern.Getty Images / BBC

Benjamin Cohen, left, and hubby Anthony James are accused of intersexual misconduct by PinkNews staff

The mates who tally PinkNews, the world's largest LGBT quality website, person been accused by unit of aggregate incidents of intersexual misconduct.

Several erstwhile unit members told the BBC they saw Anthony James, a manager astatine the institution and hubby of its founder, kissing and touching a inferior workfellow who they accidental appeared excessively drunk to consent.

And much than 30 existent and erstwhile members of unit said a civilization of dense drinking led to instances erstwhile laminitis Benjamin Cohen and his hubby behaved inappropriately towards younger antheral employees.

Representatives for Mr Cohen and Dr James told the BBC they were not capable to supply a connection astatine this time, but that their presumption is that the allegations are false.

Run by household members of Mr Cohen - his hubby and erstwhile GP Dr James is main operating officer, and his begetter Richard is the main lawyer - PinkNews says its ngo is "to inform, animate alteration and empower radical to beryllium themselves".

It played an influential relation successful the run for matrimony equality successful the UK and its yearly awards ceremonial has attracted premier ministers and different politicians.

Away from the cameras and reddish carpets, however, aggregate erstwhile unit members person told the BBC they had experienced bullying and intersexual misconduct which made immoderate of them consciousness unsafe to beryllium unsocial astir Mr Cohen and Dr James. Allegations of misogyny person besides emerged and respective radical told america that immoderate young pistillate members of unit had been asked to enactment arsenic the couple's surrogates.

As good arsenic interviewing 33 radical who worked astatine PinkNews betwixt 2017 and 2024, we person besides seen a assortment of grounds including authoritative written complaints, backstage emails and WhatsApp messages sharing unit members’ concerns, positive doctors’ records referring to accent and intelligence wellness struggles attributed to the enactment situation astatine PinkNews.

'They weren’t susceptible of consenting'

Five erstwhile members of unit told the BBC they had witnessed Dr James groping and kissing a inferior subordinate of staff, who they said was "too drunk to basal oregon talk" and "unable to consent".

The alleged incidental happened extracurricular a cardinal London pub, wherever unit had gathered aft a PinkNews event.

A erstwhile PinkNews unit member, who we are calling Gary, said Dr James had led the inferior workfellow down a tree. "Anthony was conscionable forcing himself connected idiosyncratic who wasn’t capable to marque that determination for themselves due to the fact that of however intoxicated they were," helium said.

People astatine the lawsuit said they helped the alleged unfortunate get location successful a taxi.

But respective erstwhile members of unit who said they witnessed the incidental told america they were excessively frightened to complain. One idiosyncratic said: "It’s the CEO’s husband, what are you going to do? Lose your job?"

A ailment astir the incidental was made aboriginal by a unit member, and was shared with respective members of the elder enactment squad astatine PinkNews. The BBC has been shown aggregate copies of the ailment but has been incapable to found whether immoderate enactment was taken arsenic a result.

Stephan Kyricacou Stephan Kyriacou, who has acheronian  hair, a beard and glasses, sitting with a radical  of different   radical   who's faces we person  pixelated. Several of them are wearing jumpers with the PinkNews logo, pixel art-style faces and a motif of a unicorn leaving a rainbow successful  its wake. Another idiosyncratic   is wearing a reddish  jumper with woven images of cats successful  yellowish  wool. A fewer  achromatic  vino  glasses are successful  shot.Stephan Kyricacou

Staff - including Stephan Kyriacou, centre - said a dense drinking civilization enabled the bosses' inappropriate behaviour

Many of the erstwhile employees said unit socials oregon awaydays often progressive drinking until the aboriginal hours of the greeting and that "Prosecco Friday" - wherever unit would beryllium fixed escaped vino and crisps - was introduced successful the bureau successful an effort to boost unit morale.

Another erstwhile unit subordinate we are calling Damian said helium personally experienced inappropriate behaviour from Mr Cohen during an evening astatine the pub aft work.

"Ben was highly drunk to the constituent helium fell disconnected his chair, and past asked maine retired of earshot of my different colleagues whether I wanted to spell backmost to his […] due to the fact that Anthony his hubby wasn’t there," Damian said.

"He said thing on the lines of 'Anthony is ever getting with different men' and the proposition was we would bash thing sexually. I was highly uncomfortable."

Damian said aft that night, helium avoided being unsocial with Mr Cohen for the remainder of his clip astatine PinkNews.

"I ne'er heard astir it again, nary apology," helium said. "It enactment maine connected alert due to the fact that it made maine realise it was a bound helium thought helium could cross."

Getty Images Sir Keir Starmer lasting  astatine  a lectern with a motion   speechmaking  "PinkNews Awards", wearing a  acheronian  suit   and tie, with a turquoise inheritance  down  him. Getty Images

Sir Keir Starmer presented a PinkNews grant successful 2022, 1 of respective politicians to attend

Stephan Kyriacou, who worked astatine PinkNews betwixt 2019 and 2021, said the occupation had started arsenic a "dream travel true" wherever helium did not person to "hide who I was oregon pretend", but the imagination was soon "shattered".

During a Christmas party, Mr Kyriacou said, Mr Cohen had slapped him connected the bottommost successful beforehand of everyone else.

"I conscionable unopen down for a minute. I didn’t cognize what to say. I was successful shock. I retrieve turning to my friends and saying, 'What the hellhole conscionable happened?'"

Mr Kyriacou said helium nary longer felt comfy capable to beryllium unsocial astir his boss.

He said: "That conscionable made maine wholly debar him. I don’t retrieve ever speaking to him one-on-one aft that."

Other unit besides voiced their concerns astir Mr Cohen, Mr Kyriacou said, with respective messages successful a radical chat describing him arsenic a "creep" and unit saying they did not consciousness comfy astir him.

"None of america truly felt similar we could kick due to the fact that we didn’t cognize what was going to hap to us. Ben is precise well-known and we didn’t cognize whether helium was going to badmouth america to people," Mr Kyriacou said.

'Creepy and sleazy'

Staff person told america they were shouted astatine and belittled by Mr Cohen, and that determination was a "toxic" civilization astatine the company.

"He tin beryllium rather brutal successful the mode helium speaks to you," said Damian. "When things spell incorrect he’d travel down connected you similar a tonne of bricks and truthful you were conscionable successful this changeless authorities of affectional flux.

"He enactment utmost pressures connected maine to the constituent I would spell location and cry. It caused issues successful my ain idiosyncratic narration with my partner, and past [Benjamin] would love-bomb maine and I would deliberation everything was alright."

Cai Wilshaw, erstwhile caput of outer affairs astatine PinkNews, said: "You had this benignant of acheronian unreality successful the bureau sometimes erstwhile Ben was there, that made it truly hard to really bask moving there.

"We worked unneurotic rather well, but it is wide that helium is simply a very, precise hard character, and sometimes overly truthful successful a mode that truly impacted radical who worked with him."

Some unit members besides said they had witnessed what they called "misogynistic" behaviour.

Several radical said that connected occasions young, pistillate members of unit had been asked to enactment arsenic a surrogate for Mr Cohen and Dr James.

They accidental that often the petition was delivered arsenic a joke, but that it had made radical consciousness "awkward and uncomfortable".

One anonymous unit subordinate called it "creepy and sleazy", portion different called it "part and parcel" of however "misogynistic" PinkNews was.

A close-up of Stephan Kyriacou, who has brownish  hair, a beard and a chemoreceptor  ring, and is wearing a navy shirt

Stephan said galore unit feared the consequences of complaining astir Mr Cohen and Dr James

Many of the unit who spoke to the BBC said they anticipation the civilization astatine PinkNews tin alteration truthful it tin proceed to archer stories applicable to the LGBT community.

"It’s important due to the fact that the mainstream media doesn’t often study connected whatever’s happening to trans oregon queer people," said Stephan Kyriacou. "I deliberation if it tin beryllium overhauled, that volition marque a monolithic difference."

Gary said determination was a request for "authentic queer-led journalism and queer-led stories" but said "unfortunately PinkNews has benignant of mislaid its credibility successful that arena".

Damian told america helium believed PinkNews’ aboriginal could lone beryllium secured if Mr Cohen and Dr James took a measurement back.

"The information you cannot abstracted the 2 is highly problematic," helium said. "Ben needs to beryllium held to account. Until the time that happens, I don’t cognize if there’s a aboriginal for PinkNews."

The BBC was informed that Mr Cohen and Dr James were not capable to supply a connection astatine this time, but we recognize that their presumption is that the allegations made against them are false.

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