After being placed on leave earlier this month pending investigations into allegations of inappropriate conduct, New York Public Radio has terminated hosts Leonard Lopate and Jonathan Schwartz.
In a statement published at WNYC.org spokesperson Jennifer Houlihan Roussel wrote, “New York Public Radio has terminated the employment of Leonard Lopate and Jonathan Schwartz following two separate investigations overseen by outside counsel. These investigations found that each individual had violated our standards for providing an inclusive, appropriate, and respectful work environment. In each investigation, an outside investigator interviewed multiple witnesses as well as Lopate and Schwartz.”
The 77 year old Lopate had been with WNYC since 1985 and had been hosting the station’s 12-2pm show. Mary Harris has been filling in since he was suspended.
The 79 year old Schwartz hosted the streaming “Jonathan Channel” dedicated to Adult Standards as well as hosting weekend shows for 93.9 WNYC-FM. He previously worked at 102.7 WNEW-FM, 1130 WNEW, and 1560 WQEW New York and worked at XM and SiriusXM as a programmer and on-air host from 2001-2013.
