Meghan Mangrum Dallas Morning News reporter fired for use of ‘bruh’ comment on Twitter against Mayor Eric Johnson the same time she was embroiled in union activities against her employer.
A case of racism? Professional disrespect? Irreverence? Or just an extension of cultural hypersensitivity in the era of woke and political correctness? Or is there more to this story that isn’t been reported?
A Dallas journalist has told of being fired after addressing the mayor as ‘bruh’ on Twitter last month.
Dallas Morning News education reporter Meghan Mangrum said she responded to a tweet from Mayor Eric Johnson on Feb. 11 that claimed the local media had ‘no interest’ in writing about a drop in violent crime.
‘Bruh, national news is always going to chase the trend,’ she wrote in the since-deleted tweet. ‘Cultivate relationships with quality local news partnerships.’
Mangrum’s tweet led to a personal response from Mayor Johnson, who tweeted, ‘Bruh? Have we met?’ Adding, ‘Gotta love when folks let their inherent biases show. I get to be addressed as ‘bruh’ by someone who writes for my daily local paper whom I’ve never met.’
Weaponising racism to punish reporters for refusing to cover a story in preferred light?
Mangrum said she was sacked three days after her tweet for violating her employer’s social media policy. The media outlet declined to specify which particular aspect of its social media policy the reporter had been fired over.
In an interview with D Magazine, Mangrum, who is white, said the paper’s executive editor, Katrice Hardy, who is black, as is the mayor, asked if she still would have used the word ‘bruh’ if the mayor were white — to which Mangrum said yes.
I’m not sure If I believe her. But let’s continue…
Mangrum says she’s used the word frequently and has directed it toward a variety of Twitter accounts, including hockey fans and the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife.
According to Dictionary.com, the word has become somewhat common, noting in its definition that ‘while bruh has been recorded in black English dating back to the 1890s, bruh spread as an interjection variously expressing surprise or dismay since at least the 2010s.’
‘I would never tell a person of color, ‘Oh, it wasn’t racist. You shouldn’t feel that way,’’ Mangrum told D magazine. ‘But I know my intent, and it was not at all about race. I use that word with my friends and when I tweet about hockey. It’s just part of my vernacular. I grew up in Central Florida, and, you know, I’m a millennial.’
Mangrum said she responded to the mayor’s initial tweet because she felt compelled to defend her colleagues.
I didn’t envision this getting the attention it has and I don’t think the story has been fairly told either.
Yes, I was fired for a tweet. But the broader context shows this is about more than my tweet. This is all I have to say ⬇️https://t.co/1PfW72ep69
— Meghan Mangrum (@memangrum) March 2, 2023
Fired cause of union activities challenging employer practises?
‘He was going after local media for their coverage of crime,’ Mangrum told D magazine, noting that she saw some of her other colleagues also responding to him over Twitter, telling him his accusations were unfair.
‘Standing up for my colleagues and the work that we do, when I know we’re doing good and honest work, is something I pride myself on and something that I look for in my colleagues and in my workplace as well.’
The mayor’s chief of staff, Tristan Hallman, also chimed in, addressing the journalists defending themselves as well as Mangrum’s use of the word bruh.
‘Calling the mayor “bruh” is disrespectful. Be a pro,’ he said as part of a tweet offering advice to reporters. Mayor Johnson then commented again, this time in response to his staffer: ‘You beat me to it, bruh! The hit dogs all hollered.’
Of note, Mangrum’s firing coincided with a Dallas News Guild protest that she helped to organize against her employer. The Guild has wrangled with management over a host of issues, including equal pay for the staff of sister Spanish publication, Al Dia. The union found that some of the staff at outlet were earning half of what their peers with similar experience were earning at the News.
It remained unclear if Mangrum’s firing may have been related to her efforts to draw attention to wage disparities along with other frictions that Mangrum has since discussed in a follow up in Medium.
The Guild has since filed an unfair labor practice complaint regarding the Company’s actions surrounding Meghan’s firing. A decision from the National Labor Board has yet to be made.
Mangrum moved to Dallas for the paper last year to work for its ‘Education Lab’. She had previously worked at the Tennessean for six years, also on education, and before that at the Chattanooga Times Free Press. She is originally from Florida.
The travails of being a corporate journalist, especially when one becomes the very news story that challenges the powerful others are reporting on… alas.
