Chicago TV exec tells female reporters not to wear hats on cold days

The network has since said this is not its official policy

The email told female reporters not to wear hats outside (Fox News )

It can get more than a little chilly in Chicago. When the wind blows - and the place’s nickname is “the Windy City” - it can be decidedly Arctic.

Yet one television executive apparently decided that his reporters, or rather his female reporters, did not need the comfort of a hat.

Dan Salamone, an executive producer on Good Morning Chicago, has found himself at the centre of controversy after reportedly telling female staff that they would “look a lot better without hats” and should go without them while reporting live outdoors.

Dan Salamone's email sparked controversy (Linkedin)

In an email, he said he would be willing to make an exception “if it’s 20 below.”

The email was first reported by media insider and blogger Robert Feder, whose independent blog has a licensing agreement with the Chicago Tribune. He called Mr Salamone the “dumbest TV executive of the year”, even though it still the first week of the new year.

Fox 32 General Manager Dennis Welsh said the station did not stand by Mr Salamone's comments, which she described as “absurd”.

“That is 5,000 per cent not a station policy,” he said.

“There was a discussion going on about all fashion choices and a couple of hat choices that maybe could have been different.”

He added: "Mr Salamone went and made a very poor judgment and sent an ill-conceived email that addressed a possible way to go, which was when the live shot comes up you would just take the hat off.”

Claudia Russo, another spokeswoman for the station, said Mr Salamone would be receiving appropriate disciplinary action.

It was not clear whether this would include being made to stand outside when it is “20 degrees below” without a hat.