Congress has cut federal funding for public media — a $3.4 million loss for LAist. We count on readers like you to protect our nonprofit newsroom. Become a monthly member and sustain local journalism.
This is an archival story that predates current editorial management.
This archival content was written, edited, and published prior to LAist's acquisition by its current owner, Southern California Public Radio ("SCPR"). Content, such as language choice and subject matter, in archival articles therefore may not align with SCPR's current editorial standards. To learn more about those standards and why we make this distinction, please click here.
Tinder Settles Lawsuit After Former Exec Said She Was Terrorized & Sexually Harassed By Co-Founder
(Left to right) Justin Mateen, Jonathan Badeen, Sean Rad and Whitney Wolfe of Tinder (Photo by Michael Buckner/Getty Images for Glamour)
()
Tinder settled a sexual harassment and discrimination lawsuit filed by a former Tinder exec. However, the mobile dating app company doesn't admit to any wrongdoing.
Although 24-year-old Whitney Wolfe did not disclose how much money she received in the settlement, BuzzFeed reported that Los Angeles County Superior Court documents showed she dropped the case today.
"Whitney’s lawsuit against Tinder has been resolved (without admission of wrongdoing)," Wolfe's attorney, John Mullan of Rudy, Exelrod, Zieff & Lowe, LLP, told BuzzFeed. "She is proud of her role as a co-founder of Tinder and of the role she played in the app’s success. She is now pleased to be able to focus her energy, talents, and ideas on exciting new opportunities."
Wolfe, the co-founder of the company and former marketing vice president, filed her lawsuit against Tinder on June 30. She claimed that co-founder and marketing chief Justin Mateen and CEO Sean Rad subjected her to sexist, racist and homophobic comments. This included Mateen allegedly calling her a "whore" at a company event and Rad saying she was “annoying” and “dramatic" when she complained about the way she was being treated by Mateen.
Support for LAist comes from
Wolfe said Mateen sent her a series of inappropriate and threatening text messages that she screenshot and used as part of her exhibit A in her lawsuit. She said that when she complained to Rad about Mateen's harassment, this eventually led to Rad firing her. In addition, she believed her firing was also caused by the fact that the Tinder execs felt that having a 24-year-old woman as a co-founder of Tinder made the company "seem like a joke."
Soon after Wolfe had filed the lawsuit, Tinder's parent company IAC put Mateen on leave. According to the lawsuit, Wolfe felt that the execs represented "the worst of the misogynist, alpha-male stereotype too often associated with technology startups."
As Editor-in-Chief of our newsroom, I’m extremely proud of the work our top-notch journalists are doing here at LAist. We’re doing more hard-hitting watchdog journalism than ever before — powerful reporting on the economy, elections, climate and the homelessness crisis that is making a difference in your lives. At the same time, it’s never been more difficult to maintain a paywall-free, independent news source that informs, inspires, and engages everyone.
Simply put, we cannot do this essential work without your help. Federal funding for public media has been clawed back by Congress and that means LAist has lost $3.4 million in federal funding over the next two years. So we’re asking for your help. LAist has been there for you and we’re asking you to be here for us.
We rely on donations from readers like you to stay independent, which keeps our nonprofit newsroom strong and accountable to you.
No matter where you stand on the political spectrum, press freedom is at the core of keeping our nation free and fair. And as the landscape of free press changes, LAist will remain a voice you know and trust, but the amount of reader support we receive will help determine how strong of a newsroom we are going forward to cover the important news from our community.
Please take action today to support your trusted source for local news with a donation that makes sense for your budget.
Thank you for your generous support and believing in independent news.
Chip in now to fund your local journalism
(
LAist
)
Trending on LAist
-
Administrators say the bargaining units should be dismissed, or that they have no standing. One campus is going after the federal agency in charge of union activity. -
The landslide is not connected to the greater Portuguese Bend landslide, city officials said. -
Nom. Nom. Nom. The event destroyed the internet when it was first announced — and sold out in minutes. -
The critical findings are part of long-awaited after-action report was released Thursday. It contains recommendations for increasing emergency staffing and updating old systems. -
Diving has changed, mountain biking has been added. Here's where to watch the Olympics in person in 2028. -
'A Great Day in the Stoke' is a free, daylong event in Orange County billed as 'the largest gathering of Black surfers in history.' The fourth annual festival is set for Saturday in Huntington Beach.
Best of LAist