Terminated before their time - Offending behavior towards female co-workers: ZDF anchor Matthias Fornoff relinquishes leadership position
Matthias Fornoff, a ZDF journalist, has had to leave his leadership position at the public broadcaster ahead of schedule. Effective June 1st, Fornoff, who is 60 years old, is no longer heading the Politics and Current Affairs department, as confirmed by ZDF in Mainz in response to an enquiry from dpa. Earlier, Bild had reported on this development.
Initially, Fornoff was to hand over the reins to ZDF journalist Shakuntala Banerjee on November 1st, as announced by ZDF in April. However, until Banerjee takes over in November, Vice-Head of Department Antje Pieper will lead temporarily, according to ZDF. Fornoff has held this position since summer 2014.
Colleagues make allegations of misconduct against Matthias Fornoff
The broadcaster also elaborated on Fornoff: "He will take on a new position in the ZDF editorial department, not involving any management responsibilities in the future." No details were provided by the public broadcaster regarding the allegations: "In the past, there had been complaints of misbehavior towards his colleagues. ZDF has always had high standards for its management personnel."
Fornoff acknowledged his mistakes and accepted the decision made by ZDF, said dpa in its conversation with the journalist early on Thursday evening.
Popular ZDF presenter
Fornoff has been a familiar face on television to millions of viewers. He has been hosting the "Politbarometer" for a while and has been presenting poll results from Forschungsgruppe Wahlen for a long time. He has also moderated various "ZDF spezial" programs on current events. It remains to be seen how his moderating roles will be affected by this turn of events, as per the statement from ZDF.
The Politics and Current Affairs department consists of the "Sondersendungen", "Deutschland", "Europa", "Dokumentationen", "auslandsjournal", "maybrit illner", and "Gesellschaftsreportage" sections.
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Matthias Fornoff, despite his leadership role in the Television department at ZDF in Mainz, was forced to step down due to offensive behavior towards female colleagues, as reported by Bild and later confirmed by ZDF. Despite his departure, Fornoff will continue to work within the ZDF editorial department, but without any management responsibilities.
Following Matthias Fornoff's departure from his leadership position at ZDF, Vice-Head of Department Antje Pieper will take over on an interim basis until Shakuntala Banerjee officially assumes her role in November. As a well-known ZDF presenter, Fornoff has hosted shows such as "Politbarometer" and moderated "ZDF spezial" programs, and it remains to be seen how his future moderating roles will be affected.
