Freelance television producer Kristen Hentschel has filed a high-profile lawsuit against a web of powerful individuals and organizations, alleging that a conspiracy led to the destruction of her once-flourishing career.
The ‘Emmy-nominated producer’ accuses Jeffrey Pitts, a former CEO of the controversial consulting firm Matrix LLC, along with public relations powerhouse McNicholas & Associates, and prominent news outlets NPR and Floodlight, of orchestrating a campaign of defamation, false light, and invasion of privacy.
“Plaintiff Kristen Hentschel (“Plaintiff” or “Hentschel”) brings this action against Defendant Jeffrey Pitts (“Pitts”) for tortious interference with business relationships, defamation, false light, and invasion of privacy, against Defendant McNicholas & Associates, Inc. (“McNicholas”) for invasion of privacy and false light, and against Defendants National Public Radio, Inc. (“NPR”) and Floodlight, Inc. (“Floodlight”) for defamation and false light,” according to the court filing obtained by The Gateway Pundit.
Hentschel, who previously worked behind the scenes at ABC News, claims her professional and personal life became collateral damage in a power struggle between Pitts and Matrix’s owner, Joe Perkins.
The allegations center on Pitts, who allegedly “groomed” Hentschel to serve his interests before sacrificing her career to protect high-profile clients, including Florida Power & Light and Florida Crystals.
Hentschel contends that Pitts provided false information to media outlets, resulting in NPR and Floodlight publishing defamatory articles that irreparably damaged her reputation.
The stories, published in late 2022, accused Hentschel of unethical journalism practices, including leveraging her ABC credentials for corporate espionage—a claim she vehemently denies.
The Journalist’s Resource reported that the operations of Matrix LLC, a political consulting firm, and its alleged payments to local news outlets to shape coverage in favor of powerful clients, might have remained undisclosed if not for an anonymous whistleblower who leaked hundreds of internal documents in 2022.
The leaked trove included emails, financial ledgers, and other records that laid bare the firm’s covert tactics.
Floodlight, an environmental news collaborative, joined forces with NPR to dig into the documents. Over five months, journalists from both outlets painstakingly verified details from the records.
Their investigation culminated in a December exposé titled “Power Play,” which focused on Matrix’s work for two major clients: Florida Power & Light and Alabama Power, among the nation’s largest utility companies.
The investigation revealed that Matrix and its clients funneled hundreds of thousands of dollars to six news sites and even a television producer to discredit critics of the power companies. Among the more damning findings was the involvement of freelance producer Kristen Hentschel, known for her work with “Good Morning America.”
Screenshot: NPR
Hentschel reportedly received at least $14,350 from Matrix to pose as a journalist and ambush environmentally ‘friendly politicians’ with misleading questions, claiming to represent ABC News.
Daily Mail reported:
Hentschel is accused of at least four different acts of political espionage while on the payroll of Matrix.
In one instance, she confronted a Florida State Rep and alleged that a construction project that he was involved in of being responsible for deaths of endangered tortoises, which was false.
Hentschel is also accused of smearing a South Florida mayor by saying that a previously settled lawsuit involving the mayor’s daughter and a friend was about to come under renewed spotlight.
On another occasion, Hentschel door stepped a Florida Republican Congressman, telling his wife and she was from ABC News, and wanting to question him about crude jokes he had made on Facebook years earlier.
In another bizarre act, Hentschel, who is based in Florida, hired an Atlanta-area personal trainer and befriended her. The trainer was the ex-girlfriend of the CEO of a company that was a rival to her clients. It was later reported that the trainer and her ex-boyfriend had been the victims of spying.
ABC immediately denied any connection to the scandal, stating, “Kristen Hentschel was a freelance daily hire who never worked for ABC News on the political stories referenced in the NPR article.”
NPR and Floodlight are accused of failing to verify their sources and relying on leaked, unverified documents provided by Pitts and McNicholas. The articles, which NPR has refused to retract, allegedly cast Hentschel as a “rogue operative,” causing ABC News to sever ties with her.
According to the court filing:
“Plaintiff provided written notice to Defendants NPR and Floodlight prior to filing this action, specifically identifying the alleged defamatory statements and affording them the opportunity to investigate and issue a correction, retraction, or clarification. This notice was served more than five (5) days before the filing of this Complaint, in compliance with the statutory requirements.
As a direct and proximate result of Defendants’ false statements, Plaintiff has suffered loss of employment and professional opportunities, including termination from ABC News; significant harm to her professional reputation and credibility, emotional distress; and economic damages.”
The post EXCLUSIVE: Former ‘GMA Producer’ Accused of Taking Thousands from Florida Lobbying Firm for ‘Hit Job’ Interviews Sues NPR, Floodlight, and High-Profile Players appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.