Joy Taylor Has Been 'Sidelined' From 'Speak,' but Why Is She off the Air?

The controversy at FS1 has continued to roil through the network's shows. Joy Taylor, one of the hosts of the evening show Speak on the network, has been off the air for more than a week, leading some to wonder what happened to her and whether she'll be coming back.

Taylor's removal from the air is reportedly connected to a misconduct lawsuit filed against the network. Here's what we know about why she has been "sidelined," and whether she'll be returning to Speak at some point.

According to reporting in Front Office Sports, Taylor was "sidelined" from the FS1 show because of a misconduct lawsuit that was filed by hairstylist Noushin Faraji. In the lawsuit, Faraji claims that Joy discriminated against her because of her Persian ethnicity. The lawsuit also alleges that Taylor had sexual relationships with Fox Sports executive Charlie Dixon (another party in the lawsuit) and host Emmanuel Acho in order to advance her career.

Taylor has reportedly asked that the lawsuit be dismissed due to the allegations in it being baseless. Faraji's lawsuit also implicates former FS1 host Skip Bayless, who the lawsuit claims was guilty of rampant sexual harassment during his time with the network.

Taylor's social media accounts still say that she is one of the hosts of Speak, so it seems like she has not yet been permanently fired from the show.

What's more likely is that Joy has been taken off the air until the matter is resolved one way or another, in part so that she doesn't wind up in more legal trouble than she is already.

The lawsuit certainly makes some explosive allegations, but there has not been a full accounting of the evidence in the case, and it's very possible that it all could be resolved in a settlement where none of the parties in the lawsuit acknowledge any guilt.

Although the allegations against Taylor are serious, both Bayless and Dixon are accused of even more serious crimes in the proceedings. The lawsuit alleges that Bayless offered to pay Faraji $1.5 million for sex, and that Dixon touched her inappropriately without her consent.

Bayless no longer works for FS1, but it's unclear whether his departure from the network had anything to do with these allegations.

It's also unclear how long Taylor might be sidelined from the show, but if FS1 is planning to keep her on the bench until the lawsuit is resolved, it seems possible that she'll be absent from the program for several months. It's also possible that Taylor will never return to the program if the lawsuit is not resolved in a way that clears her of any wrongdoing.

For now, then, fans of Speak will just have to do without her, and wonder whether she might be back on the air at some point, or whether she'll be gone from the show for good.