The couple who run PinkNews, the world’s largest LGBT news website, have been accused by staff of multiple incidents of sexual misconduct.
Several former staff members told the BBC they saw Anthony James, a director at the UK-based company and husband of its founder, kissing and touching a junior colleague who they say appeared too drunk to consent.
And more than 30 current and former members of staff said a culture of heavy drinking led to instances when founder Benjamin Cohen and his husband behaved inappropriately towards younger male employees.
Representatives for Mr Cohen and Dr James told the BBC they were not able to provide a statement at this time, but that their position is that the allegations are false.
Run by family members of Mr Cohen – his husband and former GP Dr James is chief operating officer, and his father Richard is the chief lawyer – PinkNews says its mission is “to inform, inspire change and empower people to be themselves”.
It played an influential role in the campaign for marriage equality in the UK and its annual awards ceremony has attracted prime ministers and other politicians.
Away from the cameras and red carpets, however, multiple former staff members have told the BBC they had experienced bullying and sexual misconduct which made some of them feel unsafe to be alone around Mr Cohen and Dr James. Allegations of misogyny have also emerged and several people told us that some young female members of staff had been asked to act as the couple’s surrogates.
As well as interviewing 33 people who worked at PinkNews between 2017 and 2024, we have also seen a variety of evidence including official written complaints, private emails and WhatsApp messages sharing staff members’ concerns, plus doctors’ records referring to stress and mental health struggles attributed to the work environment at PinkNews.
‘They weren’t capable of consenting’
Five former members of staff told the BBC they had witnessed Dr James groping and kissing a junior member of staff, who they said was “too drunk to stand or talk” and “unable to consent”.
The alleged incident happened outside a central London pub, where staff had gathered after a PinkNews event.
A former PinkNews staff member, who we are calling Gary, said Dr James had led the junior colleague behind a tree. “Anthony was just forcing himself on somebody who wasn’t able to make that decision for themselves because of how intoxicated they were,” he said.
People at the event said they helped the alleged victim get home in a taxi.
But several former members of staff who said they witnessed the incident told us they were too scared to complain. One person said: “It’s the CEO’s husband, what are you going to do? Lose your job?”
A complaint about the incident was made later by a staff member, and was shared with several members of the senior leadership team at PinkNews. The BBC has been shown multiple copies of the complaint but has been unable to establish whether any action was taken as a result.
