The events took place over six years. Six years during which Noushin Faraji, hairdresser for Fox Sports, claims to have refused all kinds of advances of a sexual nature from American commentator Skip Bayless.
The case will ultimately proceed to court. Noushin Faraji filed the complaint in the Superior Court of California in Los Angeles and seeks damages from the journalist, but also from Fox Sports and its parent company, Fox Corporation.
Lawyers for the alleged victim say network executives fostered a hostile work environment that allowed Skip Bayless to abuse her without fear of punishment.
“He was trying to put pressure on her”
Prolonged hugs, kisses on the cheek, proposals for sex to “change your life”… The complainant even says that in 2021, Bayless offered her $1.5 million for sex, which she allegedly refused, before being threatened with losing his job.
“Ms. Faraji knew he was trying to pressure her into having sex with him, but she kept repeating that she was a professional who should be kind to all talents,” the complaint states, in comments reported by the Associated Press.
EXCLUSIVE: A former Fox Sports hairdresser alleged a network exec used “his position to sexually harass women” and says she refused a $1.5M offer from former FS1 host Skip Bayless “to have sex with him” in a lawsuit obtained by @FOS. (w/ @MMcCarthyREV) https://t.co/dI3UWgB0hJ
— AJ Perez (@byajperez) January 5, 2025
The hairdresser, who worked for 10 years for the chain, claims to have been subsequently fired in 2024 for “invented” reasons. The complaint says she initially kept quiet about her treatment at Fox, believing she might be in danger if she made the matter public.
For his part, Skip Bayless worked for Fox Sports until 2024, when his show was canceled after his audience plummeted with the departure of his co-anchor Shannon Sharpe. The American channel said in its press release that it was taking the matter “very seriously”.