Messenger Execs Sue Failed Startup for Reneging on Big Payouts Promised to Them
A month after Jimmy Finkelstein’s quixotic media startup The Messenger crashed and burned, suddenly leaving hundreds jobless, three business-side executives are suing the media mogul’s “centrist” news site for welching on the hefty severance packages promised to them.
In a complaint filed in New York County this week against The Messenger, former sales executives Danielle Varvaro, Christopher Parks, and Brad Bosserman allege that their employment agreements with Finkelstein promised each of them at least six months of their salary if they were terminated without cause. Based on their compensation, each of the plaintiffs is seeking at least $150,000 plus interest and attorneys’ fees. The Washington Post’s Will Sommer first reported last week that the executives planned to sue.
According to the lawsuit, Varvaro and Parks were hired by Finkelstein a few months before The Messenger officially launched in May 2023. Headquartered in New York, both of them were brought in to lead the company’s sales division and signed similar employment agreements.