CBS News chief correspondent Matt Gutman is facing allegations of sexual harassment in a lawsuit filed by a former colleague, Samira Said. The suit, lodged Friday in Los Angeles Superior Court, also names ABC News and its parent company, Disney, as defendants, claiming wrongful termination and failure to accommodate a disability.
Said, a former field producer, alleges that Gutman made inappropriate remarks on at least two occasions. One incident reportedly occurred when Gutman initiated a discussion rating a female correspondent's appearance, reducing her professional standing to a numerical score based on physical attributes. The lawsuit states that male members of the crew, including Gutman, attempted to involve Said in this discussion, which she declined, deeming it inappropriate.
On another occasion, related to a movie release, Gutman is accused of making a "sexualized insinuation" toward Said. According to the filing, he questioned if her desire to leave an area was due to having an "after-hours date in the city." Said claims this remark demeaned her and reduced her professional judgment to a "sexualized stereotype."
Gutman, 48, worked at ABC News for nearly two decades before joining CBS News earlier this year. His tenure at CBS has coincided with a surge in viewership for the network's morning show when he recently filled in for anchor Tony Dokoupil, with his appearances marking the program's most watched month since March.
The lawsuit also details Said's allegations of wrongful termination from ABC News in 2025. She claims the company violated California's Fair Employment and Housing Act by not accommodating her mental health issues. Said alleges that after covering the 2022 Robb Elementary School shooting, she experienced severe psychological symptoms and was denied a requested leave of absence despite COVID-19 symptoms. Even after a psychiatrist approved medical leave, she reportedly continued to receive assignment requests.
According to the suit, Said was cleared to return to work in January 2023 with the expectation of reasonable accommodations to prevent trauma triggers. However, she claims ABC's HR department pressured her to drop these accommodations for months. In September 2023, Said suffered a mental health crisis and was off work for several months. The following January, while working on assignments related to the Los Angeles wildfires, she alleges her accommodation requests were ignored, and the assignment was made with knowledge of her disability and without accommodations.
The lawsuit is seeking compensatory and punitive damages, as well as attorney's fees.