That was a total waste of my time,” Ben Montgomery said to Fox News Digital.
After reporter Ben Montgomery labeled a forum held by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (R) “propaganda,” Axios decided to let him go.
“This journalist has left Axios. As our workers’ privacy is important to us, we will not discuss their departure. The CEO of Axios, Sara Kehaulani Goo, said as much to Fox News Digital.
Montgomery’s response to a press release about a roundtable discussion on “divisive ideas like Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives, Critical Race Theory (CRT), and the effects that these ideas have had on Florida higher education institutions and the students that go there” was shared this week by Alex Lanfranconi, the communications director for the Florida Department of Education.
What you’re reading isn’t news; it’s propaganda, Montgomery declared.
Many on the right were eager to condemn Lanfranconi, a liberal journalist when he tweeted a screenshot of the reaction on social media. Unfortunately for Montgomery, it appears that he suffered more than just social media backlash as a result of his conduct.
Vanity Fair reporter Charlotte Klein tweeted that Montgomery was let go from Axios on Monday after the incident. Publicly, Montgomery downplayed the gravity of the issue.
“I’ve got some personal news: I cooked crepes this morning, which is something I haven’t done in years. Topped with whipped cream and strawberry sauce. Indeed, they were delicious. When Klein announced his dismissal on Twitter, Montgomery confronted him about it.
It wasn’t Montgomery’s political beliefs, he told Fox News Digital, but his lack of knowledge, that led him to dislike the press release.
According to Fox News Digital, Montgomery said, “It was a waste of my time,” but he doesn’t regret sending the email because his teenage daughters were proud of him.
That, he argued, was all that counted.
When Montgomery was suddenly let go without explanation, he felt the press statement could have provided more context.
‘I hate that I’m so short,’ he moaned. As Axios would say, “I tried to be as short as possible, but it didn’t work.”
According to Axios’ Editorial Ethics Standards, which state that all workers must “maintain professionalism with all sources” and “respect and be nice to all persons we come into touch with,” Montgomery’s “propaganda” email response was inappropriate.
Montgomery created a phony event news release. It included quotations from a variety of speakers, including Commissioner of Education Manny Diaz, Jr. and school choice advocate Christopher Rufo, who all spoke out against the detrimental effects of DEI programs on education and children.
The statement argues that the principles in question “promote exclusion and division in higher education” and “add nothing to learning or knowledge,” and hence should not receive funding from the likes of the hardworking tax-paying Florida parents of college students.