Gutman is specifically accused of participating in two workplace incidents that Said says contributed to a hostile environment.
Said worked out of ABC News’ Los Angeles bureau from May 2021 until she was fired in March 2025. According to her complaint, she was assigned to a team consisting of Gutman and two other male crew members.
One alleged incident occurred while the group was waiting in a public line during an assignment. Said claims Gutman began discussing the appearance of another female journalist.
“While the team waited in a public queue during the assignment, Gutman initiated a discussion rating a female correspondent’s appearance and reducing her professional standing to a numerical score based on her physical attributes. The male crew joined in, continuing to assess the woman’s body and looks in Said’s presence,” the complaint alleges. “The men attempted to draw Said into the conversation by soliciting her views. Said declined and stated the conversation was inappropriate.”
The lawsuit describes another alleged encounter during a press event connected to a movie release.
Said and Gutman reportedly disagreed over whether their team should leave the location. According to the complaint, Gutman responded in front of coworkers by suggesting Said wanted to remain because she had a date planned.
“In front of multiple coworkers, Gutman responded by making a sexualized insinuation that Said must have an after-hours date in the city and that this is why she did not want to relocate. The remark, made audibly to others, demeaned Said and reduced her professional judgment to a sexualized stereotype,” the filing went on.
The allegations remain claims contained in a civil lawsuit and have not been proven in court.
While those incidents involve Gutman directly, Said’s lawsuit paints a much broader picture of her experience inside ABC News.
The former producer alleges she dealt with psychological trauma and depression and sought medical leave and workplace accommodations. Her complaint also connects some of those difficulties to her work covering major tragedies for the network.
Said was sent to Uvalde, Texas, to cover the horrific 2022 elementary school shooting. She later sought leave, according to the suit, but the request was initially denied. A psychiatrist subsequently certified that she needed medical leave from August 2022 until January 2023.
When she returned, Said says she requested accommodations designed to minimize exposure to trauma triggers. She alleges those requests were rejected.
Her employment situation allegedly deteriorated from there.
According to the lawsuit, Said was eventually moved to weekend desk assignments. She later suffered a bone contusion to her foot while reporting on severe weather. A company physician examined the injury and concluded that she did not need to take leave.
Then came her termination.
Said says she entered what had been presented as an ordinary workplace check-in on March 5, 2025, only to learn that ABC was terminating her employment.
She is now seeking damages from the defendants, including general and special damages, exemplary damages, interest, attorneys’ fees, costs, and additional relief. The complaint lists an amount exceeding $35,000.
Representatives for ABC News, Disney, CBS News, and Gutman have reportedly declined to address the substance of the allegations, saying they had not yet reviewed the complaint.
The timing creates an uncomfortable development for CBS.
Gutman spent nearly two decades at ABC before making the jump to CBS earlier this year. He has since taken on a prominent role at his new network, serving as a lead correspondent for “48 Hours” and contributing to the prestigious “60 Minutes.”
He has also been tapped to fill in behind the anchor desk at “CBS Evening News.”
Those appearances have come as the broadcast has reportedly enjoyed a ratings bump, putting Gutman in an increasingly visible position at the network precisely as allegations from his previous workplace surface publicly.
The lawsuit could now put fresh scrutiny on both Gutman’s past at ABC and his growing profile at CBS.
For CBS, the controversy arrives while Gutman appears to be establishing himself as one of the network’s more versatile personalities, moving between high-profile investigative programs, correspondent assignments, and the evening news anchor chair.
For ABC and Disney, the case potentially carries broader consequences because Said’s accusations extend well beyond the two encounters involving Gutman. Her complaint challenges how the network allegedly handled her medical needs, workplace accommodations, assignments, injury, and eventual firing.
Gutman, meanwhile, has not been found liable for any wrongdoing, and the claims against him will have to proceed through the legal process.
But with a former ABC producer taking her accusations to court and naming one of CBS News’ increasingly prominent faces as a defendant, a legal fight rooted in Gutman’s old network is now following him straight into the spotlight at his new one.
