A wrongful termination lawsuit filed in Los Angeles on August 14 has brought serious allegations against CBS News chief correspondent Matt Gutman. The plaintiff, Samira Said, a former field producer for ABC News, claims that Gutman engaged in sexual harassment during their time working together at the network.
According to the court filing obtained by, Said alleges that while on assignment, Gutman initiated a conversation where he rated a female correspondent’s physical appearance, effectively reducing her professional standing to a numerical score. The suit claims that other male crew members joined in the discussion and attempted to solicit Said’s opinion, which she declined, noting that the behavior was inappropriate.
In a separate incident, Said alleges that a disagreement regarding the team’s departure from a work site led Gutman to make a “sexualized insinuation” suggesting she must have an after-hours date. The complaint asserts that this remark, made audibly to others, demeaned her professional judgment and relied on sexualized stereotypes.
Said, who worked at the ABC News Los Angeles bureau from May 2021 to March 2025, also details a broader pattern of workplace grievances in her lawsuit. She claims that she suffered severe psychological symptoms following an assignment to cover the 2022 school shooting in Uvalde, Texas, and had previously tested positive for COVID-19 during that same period.
The lawsuit states that a psychiatrist granted Said medical leave from August 2022 through January 2023. Upon her return, she was cleared to work with specific reasonable accommodations to protect against trauma triggers. However, Said alleges that ABC and former bureau chief David Herndon denied these requests, insisting she return without restrictions or face termination.
Following these events, Said claims she was demoted to weekend desk shifts in March 2023. Her employment was eventually terminated in March 2025, shortly after she sustained a bone contusion from heavy equipment while covering a hazardous weather event. The complaint notes that although she reported the injury, a Disney physician determined she did not require medical leave.
Matt Gutman, 48, currently serves as a lead correspondent for “48 Hours.” He joined CBS News earlier this year after a long tenure at ABC, where he began as a radio correspondent in 2008 before rising to chief national correspondent. Gutman has previously faced professional scrutiny, including a 2020 suspension for erroneous reporting regarding the Kobe Bryant helicopter crash and criticism last year for his comments concerning a suspect in the Charlie Kirk case.
Representatives for CBS News, ABC News, and Said have been contacted for comment regarding the allegations. The lawsuit remains pending in the Los Angeles court system.
14 and obtained by.
“The male crew joined in, continuing to assess the woman’s body and looks in Said’s presence.
The men attempted to draw Said into the conversation by soliciting her views.
Last September, he was condemned for calling texts from Tyler Robinson, who has been charged with assassinating Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk, “very touching in a way we did not expect.” Gutman later apologized for his choice of words.
He also faced scrutiny in 2020, when he erroneously said on air that all four of Kobe Bryant’s children died in the fatal helicopter crash, which killed the Lakers legend, his 13-year-old daughter Gianna and seven others.
In 2022, she was assigned to travel to Uvalde, Texas, to cover the aftermath of the school shooting Robb Elementary, where 19 students and two teachers were killed, and she experienced “severe psychological symptoms,” according to the complaint.
with full-week availability, she would not be permitted to resume her role,” the complaint reads.