A.G. Gancarski
Those of a certain age in Jacksonville will remember Bart Hubbuch.
Hubbuch, who left the River City some years ago, used to cover the Jacksonville Jaguars for the Florida Times-Union.
He moved on, ending up with the New York Post.
Hubbuch is back on the job market now, reports Deadspin, after an ill-advised Tweet comparing the inauguration of President Donald Trump to September 11, 2001 and the Pearl Harbor attacks.
“12/7/41. 9/11/01. 1/20/17,” Hubbuch wrote, clearly not sticking to sports on Inauguration Day.
The Tweet got some traction — if you call eight Retweets traction, that is.
However, it proved to be fateful for Hubbuch’s career in the sports capital of the United States, given that New York suffered most grievously on 9/11, with people still experiencing psychological and physical consequences from the attacks to this day.
Hubbuch was fired soon after Tweeting that, despite complying with an organizational directive to delete the Tweet.
As Vocativ reports, Hubbuch is now suing the New York tabloid.
Hubbuch’s case is predicated on a statute in New York labor law, which boils down to not being able to be fired for political activities off the clock.
Vocativ also notes that Hubbuch asked about the Post’s social media policy.
The response boiled down to “what policy?”
Hubbuch had a history of controversial Tweets, which Vocativ also documented, and which no doubt will serve as a foundation for the Murdoch empire’s defense against Hubbuch’s legal action.
Meanwhile, as an at-will employee, Hubbuch essentially has no recourse in New York state. The employer can can him at any time, for any reason.
And the New York Post did exactly that.
