Apr 14, 2022 - Technology

Newsom denies Activision Blizzard interference

Megan Farokhmanesh

Photo: Brontë Wittpenn/The San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images

A representative for California Gov. Gavin Newsom told Axios that yesterday’s report claiming he directly interfered with the ongoing Activision Blizzard lawsuit is “categorically false.”

“The Newsom administration supports the effective work [the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing] has done under Director Kevin Kish to enforce civil rights laws and protect workers, and will continue to support DFEH in their efforts to fight all forms of discrimination and protect Californians,” said communications director Erin Mellon.

In a statement sent to Axios, Kish said that DFEH “has litigated groundbreaking cases that are a model of effective government enforcement of civil rights."

“We continue to do so with the full support of the administration. Our cases will move forward based on the facts, the law, and our commitment to our mission to protect the civil rights of all Californians,” Kish said.

Catch up quick: Two lawyers on the Activision Blizzard case have resigned or been fired — assistant chief counsel Melanie Proctor and chief counsel Janette Wipper, respectively.

Proctor reportedly told staff she was resigning in protest of Wipper's firing, which she claimed was due to Wipper's “attempt to protect” the DFEH's agency's independence from interference by the Office of the Governor, Bloomberg said.

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Editor’s note: This story has been corrected to identify the agency involved as the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing (not the California Department of Fair and Equitable Housing).

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Newsom denies Activision Blizzard interference

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