Fired Meteorologist Reveals News Boss’s Shocking Demands

A well-known Minnesota TV meteorologist says her career was destroyed after years of harassment from her boss — who allegedly ordered her to wear tight dresses, mocked her decision to stop bleaching her hair, and even speculated about sleeping with her in front of colleagues.

Former KSTP-TV evening forecaster Wren Clair, whose legal name is Renee Fox, filed a bombshell lawsuit this week accusing the ABC affiliate in St. Paul of sexual harassment and retaliation.

Clair claims her one-time news director, Kirk Varner, turned the newsroom into a hostile workplace from the moment he arrived in 2019.

“He constantly talked about her body and looks,” the lawsuit alleges. “He told her to wear tighter clothes, complained when she wore pants instead of dresses, and criticized her for switching back to her natural brunette hair.”

Clair, who holds degrees in chemistry and meteorology, was promoted to primetime after longtime chief weathercaster Dave Dahl retired in 2020. She quickly became one of the most recognizable faces on Twin Cities TV.

But according to the lawsuit, Varner doubted “the public can accept a female lead in a scientist role” and repeatedly pushed her to simplify her weather forecasts.

Her attorney, Paul Schinner, didn’t mince words.
“In Minnesota, when your boss openly wonders what it would be like to sleep with you, and then keeps commenting on your body — that’s against the law,” he told reporters.

Clair says after she complained to HR, Varner retaliated by moving her from evening broadcasts to less desirable daytime shifts — without reducing her pay, but cutting her visibility. She was ultimately fired in February 2025, with two years left on her contract.

KSTP has denied all allegations, insisting Clair was ousted for poor performance. In court filings, the station argued that Varner’s comments about her wardrobe and appearance were “standard for on-air talent.”

They claim Clair “could not be trusted with severe weather coverage” and routinely deflected blame for her mistakes.

In one filing, KSTP argued that telling her to avoid jogger-style pants on-air or to explain her abrupt hair color change was simply enforcing “professional standards.”

Varner himself left the station in March, shortly after Clair’s termination. KSTP’s new news director, Mike Garber, declined to comment, citing the active lawsuit.

Clair’s lawsuit also points to a pattern of sexist behavior at the station. Before his retirement, Dahl allegedly complimented her appearance in ways she found inappropriate and even suggested he could cover her maternity leave — despite her never discussing children with him.

“He told me how great and slim I looked,” Clair said in her complaint. “When I reported it, Varner brushed it off, saying it was just the way men talk.”

Clair also claims male colleagues disrespected her openly once she became chief meteorologist. She says she repeatedly filed complaints to HR, only to see little change.

The lawsuit seeks back pay, attorney’s fees, and damages to be decided by a jury. Legal experts note that if Clair proves retaliation after reporting harassment, KSTP could face significant penalties.

As of now, the case is set to ignite a public battle over how female broadcasters are treated in local TV news — an industry where image, ratings, and gender dynamics have long collided.