WDEV fires announcer for ‘cruel and insensitive’ comments
October 22, 2021 | By Lisa Scagliotti Editor’s note: This story has been updated with a response from Dexter Rowe and excerpts from the original radio interview.
A WDEV radio announcer has been fired over comments he made on the air this week in discussing the murder of a 22-year-old woman in Bolton last weekend.
Dex Rowe / WDEV photo
Station manager Steve Cormier read an apology on the air Friday morning to listeners addressing comments made by Dex Rowe during the Morning News Service on Thursday for which, Cormier said, Rowe was terminated.
Rowe responded to Waterbury Roundabout Friday night with his own apology in the matter: “I was trying to use a quip to make a sad story a little lighter. It didn't work and I am so profoundly sorry. The way it was pictured is not the person I am.”
The exchange happened during a regular morning conversation with Alexandra Montgomery from WCAX Channel 3 News. The call-in at 7:10 a.m. focused on the story of the shooting death of Emily Ferlazzo.
Joseph Ferlazzo, 41, confessed to killing his wife inside their camper after an argument early Saturday morning, Oct. 16. The couple was married a year ago and was visiting with family who were renting a condo near the Bolton resort. Ferlazzo has been jailed without bail; he pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder in an arraignment in Burlington on Wednesday.
“During her story on the killing of Emily Ferlazzo, news host Dex Rowe made several cruel and insensitive comments about the story,” Cormier said Friday, adding that the remarks “were offensive and hurtful to many.”
Rowe started off the conversation by saying: “Our daily conversation with Alexandra and we have a story that has legs. It has traction. It just doesn't go away.”
Montgomery doesn’t respond. Rowe adds, “You know, the killing in the camper?”
Montgomery replies, “Oh, yeah. Well, that's because we're still a little bit early here. We're early on in all of these details coming out.” She then goes into a summary of the reporting on the story so far, adding some new details from WCAX reporting: “Police confirm with us that he was a traveling tattoo artist in Vermont with a customer base in Chittenden and Franklin counties. We had some viewers reach out to us saying that they actually have their tattoos done by him.” She describes the crime, ending with: “An autopsy does confirm that Emily Ferlazzo died of gunshot wounds to the head.”
Rowe interjects saying, “Yeah, happy anniversary.” [laughs] “Goodbye.” [laughs]
Montgomery then turns the conversation to domestic violence pointing out that half of the homicides in Vermont are connected to domestic violence and half of domestic violence homicides are committed with a gun.
“This is a sad story,” Rowe says. “But you can almost see it coming long-term because of the 19-year age difference. That doesn't always work out… He's 41, she's 22.”
Montgomery replies, “I'm not sure age is a factor in this case.”
She concludes with more on domestic violence: “Specifically, experts say that more or less in domestic violence situations there are red flags, but family members and friends on the outside may not see them, which is unfortunate. But there is help out there if anyone listening to this is in a situation like this and wants help there are many resources in Vermont and we have them linked on our website.”
Rowe wraps up saying, “Beautiful. That's a good thing to do.”
In an interview Friday, Cormier said he was listening to the broadcast and called the exchange “awful,” saying, “It was so wrong.” He said both WDEV and WCAX heard from listeners and viewers about the exchange.
“I am here this morning to apologize for what Dex said. First to the family of Emily Ferlazzo. I am so sorry for any harm he may have caused by his callous comments,” Cormier said in his on-air apology Friday morning. “I also want to apologize to our listeners, the staff of WDEV and WCAX, and especially Alexandra Montgomery. Who handled the situation like the pro she is.”
As for Rowe, he no longer is employed by the station. “Moving forward, Dex will no longer be a member of the WDEV team. Letting him go was the right thing to do,” Cormier said.
WCAX News Director Roger Garrity agreed that Rowe’s comments crossed a line. “We felt some of the comments from the WDEV announcer Thursday morning were inappropriate and did not align with our journalistic principles. We appreciate the management of WDEV for taking the matter seriously,” Garrity said in an email to Waterbury Roundabout.
The incident will not affect the relationship between the two news outlets, Garrity noted. “WCAX and WDEV have had a long-standing relationship built on our mutual commitment to delivering local news. We look forward to continuing our partnership with the station,” he said.
Cormier said he wanted Rowe to deliver an on-air apology the next day, but that Rowe offered only to record one and send it to the station. In an email exchange, Cormier said Rowe pushed back on whether the comments were inappropriate.
In his email to Waterbury Roundabout Friday night, Rowe said he was writing from Maine. He disputed Cormier’s description of events, saying the public only heard one side of the story. "There was no pushback. They asked me to write an apology, which I did, and they edited it, which I then recorded and provided to them," he said. “Apparently, they chose not to use it.”
Ultimately, Cormier said after talking with station founder Ken Squier, the decision was made to let Rowe go. “He was not sorry. He was not remorseful,” Cormier said. “His apology was not heartfelt.”
Rowe said he has worked at WDEV for the past seven years. Listeners heard him on the air on weekend mornings and during the weekday morning news program between 6 and 8 a.m. In a WDEV news release about the station’s 90th anniversary in July, Rowe was identified as a weekend announcer with the comment: “This station is literally like a family, and I’ve never seen anything like this in any place I’ve ever worked.”
Cormier said he thanked Rowe for his years of service at the independently owned Waterbury AM/FM radio station and that he wished him well. Cormier said listeners could contact him with feedback anytime by email to wdev@radiovermont.com or phone at 244-7321.
“Once again, we are sincerely sorry for [the] hurt we have caused so many people,” Cormier said.