LOS ANGELES (CelebrityAccess) — Recording Academy President and CEO Deborah Dugan appeared on Good Morning America on Thursday, discussing the allegations she leveled against the Academy in a lawsuit after she was placed on administrative leave last week.
In the interview, Dugan reiterated her claims that the Academy is dominated by males and that she was subjected to sexual harassment by Academy’s general counsel Joel Katz.
“When I came in as the first CEO of the Recording Academy in 62 years, female, there are definitely amazing people that work in the Recording Academy and also on the board, but at the very onset, in fact under the guise of a work dinner, I was propositioned by the general counsel with enormous power in the entertainment industry,” Dugan said during the GMA interview.
Dugan also doubled down on her claim that she was placed on administrative leave after filing a complaint with the Academy’s human resources department in December over the alleged harassment, and the Academy’s accusation that Dugan only came forward with the harassment claims against Katz after she was accused of creating a toxic work environment for another employee at the Academy.
“The Grammys really is on life support right now,” Dugan’s attorney, Douglas Wigdor, said during the televised interview. “The statements they’re giving about Ms. Dugan creating a toxic work environment, getting the executive board members to make statements — they are in panic mode right now.”
Joel Katz, who Dugan accused of harassing her, has denied her claims.
Watch the interview here:
