Ever since it was announced that he hired David Mueller, who a jury believed groped Taylor Swift at a concert meet-and-greet, Larry Fuss has been the subject of many national news stories. The stories, like this one in Newsweek and this one in The Daily Beast point out the rage from Swift fans that is now aimed at Fuss for hiring Mueller. He’s even received death threats. We reached out to Fuss and received this lengthy statement about the situation…
Over the past several days, I have received many e-mails and phone calls regarding my decision to hire David Mueller at KIX-92.7.
Although I welcome rational, adult conversations, 99% of the calls and e-mails were vile, vulgar, profanity-laden and juvenile. It’s hard to take people seriously when their complaints are nothing but F-word laden tirades. We have also had death threats and bomb threats since this controversy began. Responsible adults do not behave in such a manner. I don’t know Taylor Swift myself, but I imagine she would be appalled if she knew her fans were behaving like this. In fact, I remember reading that she had put it all behind her and moved on.
I don’t expect this message will sway the opinion of many of you, but we all make mistakes. We pick ourselves up and we move on. Mr. Mueller still maintains his innocence and since none of us were standing behind him and Ms. Swift when the incident occurred, none of us can speak conclusively as to what happened. Mr. Mueller has been out-of-work for almost 5-years and wants to move on with his life. Although I understand and respect the opinion of people who don’t agree with my hiring decision, I’m believe in giving people an opportunity to redeem themselves, which is why I offered Mr. Mueller a job.
It also appears many of those calling and writing are not aware of the facts:
- David Mueller was not “convicted” of sexual assault. A judgment was issued against Mr. Mueller in a civil trial. A judgment is NOT a conviction, as many have alleged. Civil trials carry a far lower burden of proof than criminal trials, and since there was no evidence actually showing Mr. Mueller’s hand on Ms. Swift’s buttocks, it came down to one inconclusive photo and a “he said, she said” situation. A seemingly star-struck jury chose to believe Ms. Swift’s version of the story. I did not call her a liar, as some have alleged. However, as many others have observed, her account of the story simply did not add up.
- As a result of the civil trial, Mr. Mueller was ordered to pay Ms. Swift $1.00. He did. The allegations that he hasn’t done so are blatantly false.
- Mr. Mueller is not a registered sexual offender, as some have alleged. He was not convicted of any criminal charge. In fact, there were no criminal charges filed against him.
- Mr. Mueller is not a child-molester or rapist, as some have alleged. He was not charged, tried, or convicted of any sex crime.
- Mr. Mueller is not a convicted felon, as some have alleged. There was no felony charge, no criminal trial, and therefore no conviction.
- Mr. Mueller passed two polygraph tests prior to the trial. Although inadmissible in court, both tests indicated his version of the story was truthful.
- Mr. Muller did not change his name to conceal his identify, as some have alleged. For well over a decade, he has been known on-air as “Jackson,” including while working at KYGO in Denver. It is not uncommon for radio people to use pseudonyms. We jokingly referred to him as “Stonewall” (in reference to Confederate General Stonewall Jackson), but he has not and will not use that name on-air. He’s simply “Jackson”.”
- Several people have commented that Mr. Mueller has failed to express remorse for what he did. Since he steadfastly maintains his innocence, why would he be expected to express remorse?
- It is extremely difficult to find talented, experienced radio people who are willing to work in our area of Mississippi for what we can afford to pay them. Perhaps it is I who am taking advantage of Mr. Mueller’s situation by giving him a job at a station in a small-town in Mississippi and paying him far less than he was making in Denver. Time will tell.
Although I certainly don’t condone sexual predators, there is no hard evidence that Mr. Mueller is a “sexual predator.” He had never been accused of or charged with any such behavior prior to the Taylor Swift incident. I sat down and talked with him face-to-face on several occasions before I hired him, something none of the people who called or e-mailed have done. Yes I do have a wife, two daughters, 4 granddaughters, as well as several nieces, so I know where many of you are coming from, but attempting to crucify the man for what was, even if he did do it, not on the same level as an actual sexual assault, is out of line. However, I get the impression many of you wouldn’t be satisfied with anything less than the death penalty.
You can rest assured that Mr. Mueller will be fired immediately if any such incident occurs in the future. In the meantime, I will not be intimidated by threats from people, the vast majority of whom do not even live within the coverage area of my radio station.
The negative comments came mostly from Taylor Swift fans. Those in the broadcast industry have been much more supportive, including this unsolicited comment from a prominent industry leader: “Good for you for giving a radio guy a second chance to rebuild his career. If any of us were fired for something questionable we may or may not have done and then never been given another chance, we all be selling shoes, cars or working in a factory or a grocery store. Forgiveness is giving him a second chance.” There’s also this message from a former listener in Denver: “Thank you for hiring him! I don’t know him but I live in Denver and I never believed for a minute he was lying. There are articles all over today about what you did and I, for one, think it is awesome. We cannot allow this to take this man’s livelihood away and I have felt for him since the day this came out. Thank you for being a critical thinker, thank you for not going with the status quo, thank you for making what I am sure is an unpopular decision.” (No, I didn’t make these quotes up, but no I can’t disclose who they are because they don’t want to be bombarded with nasty comments).
To the person who started the harassment campaign on Facebook (you know who you are), I have reported you to Facebook and have also asked my attorney to pursue charges against you for inciting harassment as well as malicious interference in my company’s relationship with our advertisers. Yes, it’s a real thing. You could also be guilty of inciting violence if any of those who made threats against me and my family actually follow through on those threats. The death threats have been reported to the police and the bomb threats have been reported to the FBI.
Because I don’t have the time or the patience to engage in continuing debate on this matter, this is the only statement I will make. Any replies will not be answered and any negative posts will be deleted from our Facebook page. Plus, any future threats will be reported to the appropriate authorities. Mr. Mueller has paid the $1.00 he was ordered to pay by the court and has moved on with his life.
Larry Fuss
President/CEO
Delta Radio Network LLC
BRAVO!! While I wholeheartedly support women having the courage to come forward and point out the abuses inflicted upon them by men in power, we have to be careful how these situations are handled. The bedrock principle of the justice system in this country is that a person is and shall be considered innocent unless and until proven guilty by a jury of his or her peers. In Mueller’s case, you succinctly explain the difference between being convicted in a criminal case and found “liable” (a dubious and dangerous term) in a civil trial. In a civil trial, after receiving instruction from the judge, the jurors as a group consider the case through a process called “deliberation,” attempting to agree on whether the defendant should be held “liable” based on the plaintiff’s claims, and if so, the appropriate compensation for any damages. There is no verdict of “not guilty” or “guilty” as in a criminal trial–just a “finding” for the plaintiff or the defendant. The sad fact is it would be difficult to assemble an unbiased and impartial jury today with the immediacy and world-wide reach social media has and the influence news has, be it fake or real, on all of us. Combine that with the popularity, image and fame of someone like Taylor Swift–it’s easy to understand why a jury as well as her fan base would quickly want to believe her. As you said, if it did happen the way she alleges, Mueller deserves to be fired AND charges brought in a criminal case. But if it did not happen, and with the lack of any clear and compelling evidence that it did, Mueller should be allowed to move on with his life. Think about this to put things in perspective: there has been far more compelling and convincing evidence against former President Bill Clinton brought to light by the many women-victims who have accused him of sexual assault and outright rape–yet look where he is today!
Kudos to you, Larry, for having the courage and compassion to do what you did!
Good on ya’ Larry. You’re doing the right thing.