A Michigan federal jury has ordered Kevin Adell, the white owner of a Detroit-based religious television network, to pay Black televangelist Bishop George Bloomer $62.2 million after finding Adell subjected him to racial discrimination, harassment and retaliation. The verdict capped a trial built around a digitally altered image showing Adell surrounded by Black ministers, alongside comments and alleged threats about Bloomer's airtime on the network.
A Trial Built Around a Racist Meme
The jury's decision, handed down Wednesday, found that Adell, founder and owner of The Word Network, subjected Bloomer to a pattern of racially charged conduct, according to Law360. The outlet reports the trial centered on a meme depicting the network owner as a pimp surrounded by Black ministers, a detail that became central to Bloomer's case that he was targeted because of his race. The case was heard in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan.
The dispute traces back to September 2019, when Adell showed and texted Bloomer a digitally created image depicting Adell alongside smaller pictures of Black ministers, including Bloomer himself, according to the USA Herald. Bloomer, a Black televangelist, pastor and author, sued The Word Network, Church of the Word and Adell under 42 U.S.C. § 1981, alleging racial discrimination, harassment and retaliation.
Texts Compared Bishop to a Sitcom Character
After Bloomer objected that the image carried a racist connotation, Adell sent texts that included comments comparing Bloomer's appearance to a midget and to the character Tattoo from Fantasy Island, according to court records reviewed in the federal court opinion. One text read simply, “You look like a midget.” Bloomer repeatedly told Adell that the image and the references to Tattoo were offensive and racist and asked him to stop, responding at one point, “I told you I don't like that tattoo business.”
Court records also show Adell acknowledged considering reducing Bloomer's airtime and referred to restricting that airtime as “the whip,” the same report notes. At summary judgment, the court found evidence from which a reasonable jury could conclude that race-related comments continued after Bloomer asked Adell to stop, and that threats concerning his airtime could support his claims.
Contract and Compensation Disputes Also at Issue
Beyond the discrimination and retaliation claims, the case brought by Bloomer and GG Bloomer Ministries against The Word Network, Church of the Word and Adell also included breach-of-contract, unjust-enrichment and quantum-meruit allegations, per the court opinion. Bloomer contended he and Adell had agreed he would be paid $10 in commission for each Word Network Christianity bible sold and $2 for each oil sold through his programs. The Eastern District of Michigan had granted in part and denied in part the defendants' motion for summary judgment ahead of trial, allowing the case to proceed to a jury.
The case is formally captioned Bloomer et al. v. The Word Network Operating Company Inc. et al., No. 2:22-cv-12433, in the Eastern District of Michigan. Court filings describe Bloomer as African American and Adell as the founder, sole owner and CEO of The Word Network.
Part of a Broader Pattern of Costly Verdicts
The Bloomer verdict lands amid a string of large discrimination and retaliation awards against media and corporate employers. A federal jury separately awarded former PIX11 reporter Ojinika Obiekwe $2.4 million after finding the New York station retaliated against her for complaining about racial discrimination, according to People.
