No. 6: Shirley Sherrod
With an African American president in the White House, the United States seemed to enter a new post-racial era. Or did it? Eager to prove that it was color-blind, the Obama administration ended up red-faced after summarily firing Shirley Sherrod, an African American employee of the Department of Agriculture, based…
No. 5: Helen Thomas
Veteran reporter Helen Thomas had been writing about the White House for 57 years. She had earned a few perks: the best seat in the White House briefing room, with her name on it; birthday cupcakes from the president; cameos in light movies about the White House; and even a…
No. 4: Steven Slater
With the economy stuck in the doldrums and unemployment at a high, many people count themselves lucky to have a job — any job. But that doesn’t mean they have to like it. Job dissatisfaction probably explained the summertime surge in popularity of Steven Slater, the JetBlue flight attendant. Flight…
No. 3: Juan Williams
For years NPR commentator Juan Williams‘s bosses had warned him about his borderline comments. Strictly speaking, he tended to tread that border at his non-NPR gigs, as a newspaper opinion columnist or as an analyst for Fox News, where he said things such as “[First Lady Michelle Obama] had this…
No. 1: Conan O’Brien
The handover of a storied comedy empire to the next generation turned into a clash of the late-night titans. Back in 2004, NBC had promised that Conan O’Brien, then host of “Late Night With Conan O’Brien,” would take over “The Tonight Show” from Jay Leno in 2009. When the time…
Ignominious Exits
Working 9 to 5 may be a grind, but with the economy stuck in a rut, people who had a steady paycheck counted themselves lucky in 2010. Maybe that’s why tales of workplace drama drew so much attention: When it’s so hard to get or keep a job, people caught…
No. 2: Rick Sanchez
A slip of the lip can sink your career, especially when you’re talking to a member of the media on the air. But of course a professional journalist knows better than to tumble into that trap, right? Maybe not. In 2010 no less than three high-profile journalists made unwise comments…
No. 10: Erin Barry
Erin and Brent Barry could have kept their separation under the radar, even if they hadn’t filed their petitions with their initials only. Although Barry holds an NBA record as the second father-son duo to win an NBA Championship (his father is Hall of Famer Rick Barry), the San Antonio…
No. 9: Eva Longoria
For Eva Longoria, it was a double-barreled betrayal by sexting. Like most celebrity unions, that of Eva and Tony Parker showed a cheery philanthropic face to the world. Their workplaces lay more than 1,300 miles apart — hers on the “Desperate Housewives” set in Los Angeles, his on the San…
No. 8: Maria Belen Chapur
Of all the high-profile and Web-monitored mistresses of 2010, Maria Belen Chapur was one who kept her distance. Then again, the woman at the receiving end of South Carolina governor Mark Sanford‘s affections (and impassioned emails) lived nearly 5,000 miles from the scandal’s epicenter. Local media set up camp at…