Jeez-o-Petes!
A video clip featuring fired Fox 2 (WJBK-TV) anchor Taryn Asher calling a co-worker a “b—-” has gone wild online, and the internet can’t get enough of the drama.
“Get her on housewives now,” said X user @KlRBYREED, responding to the 1:11 video, which was originally posted on Aug. 15 by Deadline Detroit and made the rounds on social media Aug. 18 after it was shared by TMZ.
Podcaster and media tycoon Bill Simmons replied on X, “I’ve watched this 10 times.” Former Jezebel writer Ashley Reese wrote, “I don’t even have the full context but I’m kinda on her side lol.”
The TMZ clip has been viewed more than 28.8 million times, according to X. The clip was also shared across other social media platforms, including WorldStar Hip Hop on Instagram, where one of the top comments was supportive of Asher: “Shorty in purple standing on business,” user @theemalcolmm_ wrote.
Others reacted to Asher’s flabbergasted use of the phrase “jeez-oh-pete’s,” a folksy Midwesternism that combines the terms “jeez!” and “for Pete’s sakes” that took a lot of users by surprise.
“Geez o pete is an all timer. Who is this diva? I love her,” wrote X user @gabbdoudy, while X user @proseccopadre_ wrote, “‘Geeze-O-Pete’s’ is a new all time white phrase.”
Others downplayed the level of confrontation depicted in the video, saying it was mild compared to other newsroom blowups, while still others speculated on the video’s leak and how it ended up in the hands of the media.
The behind-the-scenes video from the station was posted over the weekend by Deadline Detroit, and it depicts a dispute between Asher and a co-worker, who is not seen on camera.
Asher is seen calling the woman a “b—-” and saying she’s “so done with her antics” after the pair had a dispute over a script. The interaction occurred during the taping of a promo at the Southfield station, not while Asher was live on the air.
Asher, 51, was fired from her job as a news anchor at Fox 2 in November. She had anchored the station’s evening news broadcasts at 5 p.m., 6 p.m., 10 p.m., and 11 p.m.
She filed a federal discrimination lawsuit against Fox 2 in June, alleging that the station discriminated against her by treating her worse than co-anchor Roop Raj, and that management terminated her contract when she complained.
Asher filed a new version of her lawsuit against the station in July, seeking a court order allowing her to immediately join a rival news station in the market.
Fox responded to the lawsuit last week, claiming Asher was rightfully terminated for “unprofessional workplace behavior” and “outbursts.” The new video surfaced at the same time as the Fox response.
This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Jeez-o-Petes! Internet reacts to Taryn Asher vid. ‘Kinda on her side’
Reporting by The Detroit News / The Detroit News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By The Detroit News | USA TODAY Network
