IGN fires editor-in-chief Steve Butts for workplace misconduct

ign-steve-butts

IGN, one of the world’s most popular destinations for video game news, has fired its editor-in-chief after investigating him for allegations that he harassed another employee.

“IGN initiated an investigation into alleged misconduct involving Steve Butts,” the publication’s general manager Mitch Galbraith said in a statement to Kotaku. “As a result of the investigation, the Company has appropriately determined to part ways with Mr. Butts.”

News of Butts’ dismissal comes two months after former IGN employee Kallie Plagge accused former IGN editor Vince Ingenito of sexually harassing her and at least one other female employee over several months in 2016. She alleged that IGN’s HR department failed to act on the complaints, and instead promoted him months later.

Ingenito left the company in March 2017.

The allegations prompted many of IGN’s front-facing employees to stage a public boycott, refusing to work until the company issued a statement and apology regarding Plagge’s allegations.

https://twitter.com/Charalanahzard/status/930174717478109184

In the week following her allegations, IGN’s editorial staff conducted meetings into the allegations, and released a public statement committing to “fix what is broken” within the company.

Kotaku learned that during one of the meetings, an employee accused Butts of harassment. While the accuser did not share details of the alleged harassment, IGN began an investigation into the allegations and placed Butts on home-duty.

A source told Kotaku that Butts was made to work from home for the duration of the investigation, which was conducted throughout November and December.

Kallie Plagge, the former employee who lodged a complaint against Ingenito, told Kotaku’s Jason Schreier that the boss she felt mishandled the situation was Steve Butts. Schreier reports:

“He told me, ‘Don’t be so uptight about it,’” she said then. “As I said on Twitter, he would also say things like ‘I just want this unpleasantness to be over,’ like we were causing him a lot of problems.”

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  1. 6 years ago
    Cicero

    So, did Butts suggest the young lady looked nice today or did he grab her. There are so many degrees of harassment! This is not a complete story.

  2. 6 years ago
    Anatoly Q. Snorthiss

    The chickens are coming home to roost in the bad social decision of decades ago to allow women to work around the home! The allure of the second income is frittered away in a second set of work and transportation expenses and the agony of False Accusation by a Female which nullifies the first income for somebody else because he’s fired automatically. We need to go back to one-income families of male breadwinners where the woman can create a nurturing home environment so children will actually be loved and not deprived, zombified cellphone-screen starers like today.

    Keep women out of the workplace!

  3. 6 years ago
    Xzavior

    Steve Butts? He sounds like an ass.

    All jokes aside, all these sexual harassment claims have pretty much left me numb to this sort of thing. I can’t look at anything anymore without thinking, “Are they doing this for attention or is there an issue going on here.” And that right there, is a huge problem in itself.

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