Fox Entertainment fires back at host claiming she was sacked because she was black

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Hollywood Today Live Co-host Porscha Coleman sued Fox Entertainment, Media General and individuals behind the entertainment show in November
She alleged that executives in the media company fired her in 2015 because she was an unmarried black woman without children and that viewers couldn't relate
An executive also said her hair would be the 'reason why the show doesn't get picked up for season two', Coleman said
She was quickly replaced on the show by mother-of-three Garcelle Beauvais
But in court documents obtained exclusively by DailyMail.com, Media General blasted the entertainment star's claims, saying her termination was justified

Published: 17:35 EST, 11 January 2017 | Updated: 18:20 EST, 11 January 2017

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The executives behind Hollywood Today Live are disputing claims that they discriminated against an ex-host because her 'image' didn't match the expectations of Middle America viewers, according to court documents obtained exclusively by DailyMail.com.

Porscha Coleman sued Fox Entertainment, Media General and several individuals behind the entertainment show in November, saying that she was discriminated against - and subsequently fired - for being an unmarried black woman without children.

Parent company Media General recently challenged the 31-year-old's accusations, saying its decision to terminate Coleman was reasonable and legally justified.

Further, they denied the former host suffered any damages due to their actions.

Porscha Coleman sued Fox Entertainment, Media General and several specific individuals behind the entertainment show in November, saying she was discriminated against for not 'appealing' to the audience

Parent company Media General recently challenged the 31-year-old's accusations, saying its decision to terminate Coleman (pictured here with other co-hosts) was reasonable, and not because her 'image' as an unmarried black woman didn't resonate with Middle America viewers

Coleman, who began working on the show when it was merely an internet series in May of 2014, said that immediately after she was hired to co-host, things started going south.

Her hair and makeup artists, she alleged, did not have any experience with 'female African-American hair' or 'darker skin tones'.

When she complained and asked to bring in a more experienced team, Coleman said executives told her to hire a black woman to make behind-the-scenes shots 'look better visually'.

Coleman's lawyer contacted the show to discuss the entertainer's difference in treatment as compared to her co-hosts, which she said only worsened the situation.

In her suit, Coleman accused the head of programming at FOX, Tracy Taw, of telling her she didn't 'appeal to Middle America'.

Taw also allegedly made a comment during a meeting that she wanted the show to last and Coleman's hair would be the 'reason why the show doesn't get picked up for season two'.

Coleman said another executive, Media General head of programming Tony Optican, came up to her after the meeting and, in a failed attempt at empathy, told her 'he understood black women' because he had dated a few in the past.

In the suit, Coleman said her hair and makeup artists did not have experience with 'female African-American hair' or 'darker skin tones'. It is unclear if the woman applying makeup in the photo is a member of the makeup team mentioned in the lawsuit

In November, she was told that she would not be filming the show for two days and was instead being replaced by actress and mother-of-three Garcelle Beauvais during shooting.

When asked for a reason behind the decision, Coleman was told by executive producer Steve Holtzer that the audience wanted to see moms and that she was not a mother.

No other co-hosts without children were replaced, she said.

Eventually, Coleman's was fired, which she believes was retaliation for her complaints about discriminatory treatment.

The host accused the show of creating a hostile work environment where 'harassment, discrimination and retaliation based on sex/gender, race and marital status were permitted, required, demanded, allowed and tolerated'.

Coleman is seeking punitive damages for the 'severe and permanent emotional and mental distress, and anguish, humiliation, embarrassment, fright, shock and anxiety' she continues to suffer.

Media General denies any and all of the allegations of discrimination or harassment against the ex-television host.

The media company says Coleman has failed to show sufficient evidence to back up her discrimination claims, and that her termination was a business decision, not a move motivated by legitimate and non-discriminatory reasons.

Media General is demanding Coleman's lawsuit be thrown out and she be awarded nothing from her complaint.

However, it says all claims against it arise from the show exercising its right of free speech involving matters of 'legitimate concern' to the public.

It's unknown how the acquisition of Media General by Texas-based Nexstar Broadcasting Group on Wednesday will impact the case, if at all.