Report: Bobby Kotick knows Activision Blizzard’s history of sexual misconduct, staff orders him to resign
Activision Blizzard sent The past few months have been embroiled in a series of federal and state lawsuits over allegations of their toxic work culture. The controversies stem mainly from Blizzard, especially due to the many stories about how the studio has fostered a culture of “twin brothers” hostile to women and marginalized employees, along with other reasons for sexual abuse and gender pay gaps. Activision CEO Bobby Kotick initially downplayed the claims, saying he was unaware of many of them before promising that the company would do better, even cut his salary to “minimum wage” of $62,500 until “conversion goals” are reached. However, a report equal The Wall Street Journal revealed further stories of employee misconduct and evidence that Kotick was not only aware of these controversies but also failed to notify Activision’s management of some of them. The report also alleges that Kotick himself has been accused of mistreating women for many years.
We highly recommend you to read Report of the WSJ (there is a charge wall, however) or writer Twitter thread by Ben Fritz highlight its core details. Activation alert for both their stories and ours as they contain references to sexual assault including rape.
WSJThe report sheds light on ongoing misconduct at Activision-owned studios Treyarch and Sledgehammer Games. In the article, evidence derived from internal documents, memos, and interviews with people close to the situations reveals several examples where Kotick reported being consistently aware of problems. this issue and did not notify Activision’s management, choosing instead to resolve the matter promptly. and as quietly as possible.
One example is the allegations against Treyarch co-head Dan Bunting. Bunting, who helped lead the production of several Call of Duty titles, was accused of sexual harassment by a female employee after a night of drinking in 2017. WSJAccording to sources familiar with the situation, a 2019 internal investigation concluded with a recommendation to terminate his contract with Bunting until Kotick intervened on his behalf, keeping him at the company while he went through it. consultation process. Polygon report that Bunting resigned from Treyarch today after WSJreport has been published.
In addition, former Sledgehammer employees have been indicted in sexual misconduct investigations, according to inside information obtained by Reuters. WSJ. A story cjoined a supervisor who allegedly raped a female employee in 2016 and 2017 after forcing her to drink heavily during work events. According to the victim’s attorney, the now-former employee reported both incidents to other leaders, Sledgehammer human resources and the police, but nothing happened. Activision is said to have handled the perpetrators internally and appears to have settled with the victim outside of court, but Kotick, again, did not report the allegations to the board of directors, according to people with knowledge of the situation. .
WSJ Also spoke to sources and reviewed documents showing that Kotick had been accused of mistreating women in and out of the workplace for many years. These allegations include a 2006 story about an assistant who claimed Kotick harassed her and left a voicemail threatening to kill her. In 2007, a flight attendant on a private jet co-owned by Kotick said she was fired by him after she told the other owner of the plane that the pilot had sexually harassed her. Kotick resolved both issues out of court.
Furthermore, an internal email from Jen O’Neal, Blizzard’s first female co-star, who announced his resignation earlier this month, revealing that she lacks faith in Activision’s leadership to fix its cultural problems. O’Neal, along with former Bioware lead Mike Ybarra, have assumed the role of co-head of Blizzard following the resignation of former president J. Allen Brack in August. O’Neal will be leaving Blizzard at the end of the year. will give Ybarra full leadership of the studio.
Based on this report, Activision Blizzard employees organized a impromptu walk today while calling for Kotick to step down as CEO. washington articles said this includes body walks as well as remote employees who refuse to work. The group also asked that employees be allowed to appoint a third party to investigate the company. The walkout, which is said to begin at 12 p.m. PT in front of Blizzard’s Irvine California headquarters, is estimated to include more than 100 people. This marks the company’s second move in just four months.
Activision’s board of directors provided feedback on WSJ’statements of s, that you can Read it in full here. It opens as follows:
“The Activision Blizzard Board of Directors remains committed to its goal of making Activision Blizzard the most welcoming and inclusive company in the industry. Under Bobby Kotick’s leadership, the Company implemented industry-leading changes including a zero-tolerance policy of harassment, an effort to achieve a significant increase in the proportion of women and non-discriminators. binary in our workforce and significant internal and external investments to enhance opportunities for diverse talent. The Board of Directors remains confident that Bobby Kotick has appropriately addressed the workplace issues that come to his attention. The goals we set for ourselves are both decisive and ambitious. The Board of Directors remains confident in Bobby Kotick’s leadership, commitment and ability to achieve these goals. ”
This is a developing story and we will update you as more information becomes available.
If any employee at Activision Blizzard or many of its studios would like to speak to Game informant For today’s report, share their own story, or talk about the changes they’d like to see in the company, you can contact the reporter for this article by email: MarcusStewart@gameinformer.com. You can also contact senior editorial associate Blake Hester by email: BlakeHester@gameinformer.com. Hester can also be communicated secretly through Signal. Message him directly on Twitter for his Signal number. Game informant can guarantee anonymity to anyone who requests it in exchange for telling their story.
