Gretchen Carlson to Fox: release employees from NDAs, 'buying silence instead of stopping harassment is immoral and unjust'

“I still can’t talk about what happened to me because of a non-disclosure agreement,” says Gretchen Carlson.

In an op-ed today, former Fox News presenter Gretchen Carlson calls on Fox to release employees from the non-disclosure agreements they were forced to sign.

“Buying silence instead of stopping harassment is immoral and unjust,” Carlson says.

“I want my voice back. I want it back for me, and for all those silenced by forced arbitration and NDAs. ”

It’s a great piece.

Here’s an excerpt.

Ironically, while most of the real women involved in the Fox News scandals remain muzzled by NDAs, two high profile Hollywood projects (Showtime’s limited series “The Loudest Voice” and Lionsgate’s upcoming feature “Bombshell”) can freely tell stories without our participation. While projects like these will certainly inspire more women to come forward, and while it’s certainly flattering (and surreal) to be depicted by such remarkable, empathetic actors as Naomi Watts and Nicole Kidman, my experience is yet another example of why the laws governing NDAs must change.

In practical terms, my NDA means I am legally prohibited from discussing — in public and in private — what happened to me. It means I cannot consult with filmmakers, writers, journalists or anyone else telling my story — whether it’s about the depiction of me, my family, or the events themselves — nor can I comment on the accuracy of a final product. I don’t know precisely what Fox would do if I violated the agreement, but presumably they’d take legal and financial actions. It’s a strange and frustrating reality.

Prohibited from telling my story, for three years I’ve focused on helping other women tell theirs through “Be Fierce” and my Lifetime documentary “Breaking the Silence.” I’ve worked with members of Congress to introduce the Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Harassment Act, a bill that has achieved bipartisan support from leaders including Senators Lindsey Graham and Kirsten Gillibrand. When two leaders so ideologically different are on the same page about forced arbitration, it really says something. Harassment in the workplace is apolitical.

Read it: Gretchen Carlson: Fox News, I Want My Voice Back [NYT opinion, image: Fox News screengrab]