Cumulus Media has filed a lawsuit against former The Ticket hosts Dan McDowell and Jake Kemp over their podcast endeavor since departing the station last month.
Both McDowell and Kemp departed the station after failing to come to a new contract agreement. According to a memo from Cumulus Dallas Market Manager Dan Bennett, the two parties saw talks break down “over competing digital media interests Dan and Jake wished to pursue outside of a Cumulus Media partnership”.
After their exit, McDowell and Kemp started a Patreon podcast entitled The Dumb Zone, a play on their former Ticket program The Hang Zone.
In response, the company sent the pair a cease-and-desist letter.
On Friday, Cumulus filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas against Kemp and McDowell alleging breach of contract.
In the complaint, the company argues that McDowell and Kemp created the new program while still employed by The Ticket, in violation of their non-compete agreements. It alleges that the program began “recording an identical show…which follows the same program format as The Hang Zone, focused on a male audience and on Dallas-area sports.”
Legal documents also show the company believes Kemp and McDowell rebranded social media accounts owned by The Ticket to feature the duo’s new show.
The company has asked for a temporary injunction against the pair and The Dumb Zone. It believes that “without a temporary restraining order and a preliminary injunction, we will continue to suffer substantial irreparable harm to its business as a result of (McDowell and Kemp’s) actions”.
According to documentation in the case, McDowell — who joined The Ticket in 1999 — had a clause in his contract that prohibited him from “directly or indirectly” engaging “in any activities the same or essentially the same” as his radio work for six months after his contract ended. A clause also appears to show that Cumulus reserved the right to enact “immediate injunctive relief” should the clause be broken.
