Neil deGrasse Tyson's Star Talk pulled from air in wake of misconduct allegations

Neil deGrasse Tyson.
(Image credit: Michael Campanella/Getty Images)

National Geographic is now investigating allegations of sexual misconduct against scientist Neil deGrasse Tyson, and pulling his show from the air until it's settled.

The astrophysicist was accused of sexual misconduct by three women in November, just after the fifth season of his show StarTalk aired. Tyson has denied the allegations, but National Geographic still pulled the show from its channel.

On Thursday, a National Geographic representative confirmed the StarTalk hiatus would continue, as its parent company Fox Networks Group investigates the claims, per Variety. The investigation will likely wrap up in a "few weeks" and the channel will decide whether to continue StarTalk then, the spokesperson said.

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In the November allegations, musician Tchiya Amet said Tyson raped her while they were graduate students in the 1980s. A physics professor later said Tyson groped her at a party and one of his former assistants said he made unwanted advances toward her. Tyson denied the allegations in a Facebook post later that month.

National Geographic had already aired three episodes of StarTalk's fifth season when the allegations surfaced, and had 15 more episodes scheduled for release into 2019. After its investigation, the channel will also have to consider whether to air Tyson's 13-episode Cosmos: Possible Worlds series slated for March, Variety notes.

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Kathryn is a graduate of Syracuse University, with degrees in magazine journalism and information technology, along with hours to earn another degree after working at SU's independent paper The Daily Orange. She's currently recovering from a horse addiction while living in New York City, and likes to share her extremely dry sense of humor on Twitter.