'Eric In The Morning' Host Coerced Sexual Favors: Ex-WTMX Staffer

CHICAGO — Eric Ferguson, the host of WTMX-FM's "Eric in the Morning" show, is being sued by a former assistant producer after she said he abused his power by coercing sexual favors from her, eventually blocking possible promotions as punishment when she refused. The woman was fired after 16 years.

Cynthia DeNicolo filed the lawsuit in Cook County in early May, one year after she was fired from the station known as The Mix.

According to the Chicago Tribune, which broke the story of the lawsuit, the "unwelcome sexual relationship" plagued the start of DeNicolo's career in radio — and that she was fired 16 years after she stopped giving sexual favors. The suit states the woman, who was around 25 when she began working at The Mix, was pressured to give Ferguson oral sex twice a month and babysit his children for almost a decade.

Ferguson's lawyers filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit last month, but did not immediately respond to Patch's request for comment on Monday.

DeNicolo was fired from the station, headquartered on East Randolph Street in downtown Chicago, in May 2020 along with 11 other staffers.

Ferguson's former co-host Kathy Hart was reportedly fired from the show after 21 years 2017. Her successor, Melissa McGurren, left without giving a reason in December 2020. "Eric & Kathy," dubbed the "most successful morning team in Chicago radio history," had been on the air since 1996 and were inducted into the Radio Hall of Fame in 2016.

According to the station's website, the show's key demographic is listeners between the ages of 25 and 54-years-old.

"The key to the success of this entertainment based, lifestyle driven show has been its ability to keep the content edgy enough to engage adults but with enough tongue in cheek humor to sail right over the heads of kids," the website states.

Ferguson's ex-wife filed for divorce from the radio host in August 2019. The former couple sold their Hinsdale home for less than they paid for it in 2020.