Josh Szeps’ very pointed tweet about Antoinette Lattouf – as axed host claims she was racially discriminated against by the ABC

An ABC presenter who was unceremoniously dumped from the public broadcaster in the same month as Antoinette Lattouf has made a pointed comment about claims she was discriminated against because of her race.

Josh Szeps, a white, male radio broadcaster, announced his resignation in November and would continue working until Christmas Day.

But a deceptive appearance by Szeps on Sky News with Sharri Markson prompted ABC Radio Sydney acting manager Mark Spurway to inform staff his final day had been fast-tracked.

“Josh will not be returning to ABC Radio Sydney in 2024 and we wish him the best of luck in his many future endeavors,” the email said.

In a new statement shared with X on Friday, Szeps appeared to question suggestions the ABC had taken against Lattouf because of her race.

He wrote: ‘If only there was evidence of a white man being abused by the ABC for lesser reasons in the very same week.’

Szeps ended up at the ABC just days before Lattouf was fired on December 20, just three shifts into her contract, filling in for Sarah Macdonald on ABC Sydney’s Mornings radio show.

Lattouf has since taken legal action against the public broadcaster, accusing management of racial discrimination and unfair dismissal.

She claims she was fired because of her ethnicity and that the ABC systematically discriminates against employees from Arab or Muslim backgrounds.

Szeps disappeared from the airwaves after appearing with journalist Sharri Markson on her Sky show on December 14, discussing the public reaction to the war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza.

In the segment, Szeps, whose grandparents are Holocaust survivors, discussed the line between pro-Palestinian support and anti-Semitism.

He was introduced as a ‘former ABC presenter’, despite technically still working for the broadcaster and serving his notice period.

It is the first time that Szeps discusses his own feud with the ABC.

It comes after Lattouf filed a Fair Work claim for wrongful termination, which was expanded to include a claim of racial discrimination.

“Despite the ABC’s rhetoric on diversity and inclusion, it is currently an unsafe workplace for journalists who are people of colour,” she said on Thursday.

Lattouf’s original submission claimed she was fired after sharing an Instagram post from Human Rights Watch, which violated the broadcaster’s social media policy.

It also alleged that ABC executive David Anderson made the decision to terminate her employment.

Lattouf claims that on her last day at work, actor station manager Mark Spurway told her she ‘sounded great’ and that the Sydney Mornings audience ‘reacted very well’.

She says she was called into a meeting with senior management an hour later and told her employment was immediately terminated because she shared a Human Rights Watch post.

That report claimed that the Israeli government was using the starvation of Palestinians as a weapon in its war in Gaza, a claim also made on ABC News.

Lattouf said station staff were visibly emotional following her dismissal, which she said was leaked to the media and published within an hour.

On Thursday, Lattouf went further, saying the ABC had taken action against her because of her Lebanese background.

“I will always advocate for a well-funded, fair, independent and representative ABC,” she said in a press release from law firm Maurice Blackburn. ‘Our democracy is more enriched as a result.

“This is why it is disheartening to not only witness the ABC’s appalling treatment of people of color over the years, but to now personally – and therefore publicly – feel its wrath.

“Despite the ABC’s rhetoric on diversity and inclusion, it is currently an unsafe workplace for journalists of color.”

‘I know several journalists of all kinds who have resigned or are about to resign because they are being unfairly scrutinized and do not believe that their employer will support them and are afraid that they will be the next to being thrown under the bus.”

Employment lawyer Josh Bornstein said the ABC’s treatment of Lattouf was “a clear breach” of the Fair Work Act.

“The claim has now been amended to reflect that Antoinette Lattouf claims she was dismissed by the ABC because she expressed a political opinion and also because of her race,” he said.

Mr. Bornstein said this has happened since the beginning of the last conflict between Israel and Hamas It is becoming notorious in the media industry that Arab and Muslim journalists are intimidated, censored and fired.”

“In this case we will show that the ABC did not fire white journalists for expressing a political opinion, even if those journalists worked in the news and current affairs sector,” he said.

‘Antoinette’s role at the ABC was not a news or current affairs role.

‘She shared four posts during her employment and was told that sharing the Human Rights Watch post somehow breached the ABC’s social media policy.

“Then she was suddenly and humiliatingly fired.”

Mr Bornstein said Lattouf was seeking a “detailed, public apology” and compensation for damage to her reputation and for humiliation and distress.

“In addition, Antoinette will seek an order that the ABC offer her an equal role on air again because she is passionate about the importance of a representative public broadcaster,” he said.

“Finally, we also seek to impose sanctions on the ABC to prevent it from repeating this behavior.”

A spokesperson for the ABC, which has not yet responded to Lattouf’s claim, declined to comment.

Lattouf co-authored an article questioning the veracity of viral footage showing pro-Palestinian activists chanting “gas the Jews” during an October protest at the Sydney Opera House.

“Analysis of the Aust Jewish Association videos by fact-checker RMIT CrossCheck found a number of clues suggesting the audio was edited…,” she claimed.

In another post from November, Lattouf wrote: “We need a PERMANENT ceasefire and must address the ROOT of the problem: the unlawful occupation of Palestine.”

In a video posted to Instagram in October, Lattouf attempted to analyze the conflict between Israel and Palestine, calling both Hamas and the Israeli government “extremists.”

Lattouf called for mourning all civilian life lost in the conflict and condemning anti-Arab and anti-Semitic rhetoric.

She then added: “You can and must condemn the illegal military occupation of Palestine that has been going on for 75 years.”

“You cannot and should not forget that human rights organizations internationally and in Israel have called the occupation ‘apartheid,'” Lattouf said.

“You can and must speak out against the occupation of Palestine, because that is the root of it all.”

A GoFundMe has since been set up by Lattouf’s supporters to help fund her legal costs.