were eliminated on the second week of competition and finished in 12th place. Firing from PBS In 2017, during the Me Too movement, Smiley was accused of sexual harassment against his female employees. PBS launched an internal investigation which concluded that Smiley had engaged in widespread acts of sexual misconduct, including "creating a verbally abusive and threatening environment" as well as engaging in "sexual relationships with multiple subordinates". Smiley was suspended indefinitely following the investigation. Smiley denied the allegations and sued PBS citing wrongful termination, however Smiley lost his bid when a jury found that Smiley violated a morality clause within his contract. The judge in the case ordered Smiley pay $2.6 million in damages. KBLA Radio As of 2022, Smiley hosts a radio show on KBLA 1580AM talk radio from 9am to noon on weekdays, and he is host of the Tavis Smiley Podcast in conjunction with KBLA. Media appearances In 2000, they began hosting annual town hall meetings called "The State of the Black Union," which were aired live on the C-SPAN cable television network. Each of these town hall meetings focused on a specific topic affecting the African-American community, featuring a panel of African-American leaders, educators, and professionals, assembled before an audience, to discuss problems related to the forum's topic, as well as potential solutions. Smiley also used his commentator status on Joyner's radio show to launch several advocacy campaigns to highlight discriminatory practices in the media and government, and to rally support for causes such as the awarding of a Congressional Gold Medal to civil rights icon Rosa Parks. Smiley also began building a national reputation as a political commentator with numerous appearances on political discussion shows on MSNBC, ABC, and CNN. Smiley has appeared on the Democracy Now! podcast. and Real Time with Bill Maher. Controversy TSU dispute In 2005, Tavis Smiley donated and raised thousands of dollars for Texas Southern University. The School of Communication was temporarily named after him, before they removed his name after controversy regarding Smiley's failure to fulfill the original financial commitment. Barack Obama comments On April 11, 2008, Tavis Smiley announced that he would resign in June 2008 as a commentator on the Tom Joyner Morning Show. He cited fatigue and a busy schedule in a personal call to Joyner. However, Joyner, referring to several commentaries in which Smiley was critical of Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama, indicated otherwise