Last Man Standing showrunner Tim Doyle censured by WGA West for offensive social media post

Producer and showrunner Tim Doyle, who has worked on TV shows including Last Man Standing, has been censured by the Writers Guild of America West for a social media post he made in 2023 that was found to be "racist and offensive."

The guild sent a letter to members Thursday that said Doyle was "charged with engaging in conduct prejudicial to the welfare of the Guild and unfair dealing with other members in violation of Article X.A., Section 1 of the Constitution."

In the letter — the contents of which were confirmed by EW — the union's board of directors wrote that Doyle "posted an image that members perceived as a racist and offensive depiction of a lynching” in a Facebook group for members on Aug. 9.

Doyle's post depicted a man handing from a tree, which he has said was an accident.

But WGA West members did not buy that.

"After hearing evidence, including Mr. Doyle's testimony, a trial committee of Current members in good standing found Mr. Doyle guilty as charged," the letter continued.

EW has reached out to WGA West, but has not heard back. Reps for Doyle could not be reached.

Doyle's credits over the past 30 years also include Roseanne; Grace Under Fire;The Big Bang Theory; Rules of Engagement; Better Off Ted; and, a series he created, The Kids Are Alright.

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Doyle made the post as a comment on an admin of the group noting that it was the 100th day of the guild's strike. He wrote, "I just got my tree up!" alongside the offensive image. It was derided by the poster, writer, director, and actor Keith Powell, as "epically horrible, racist, self-martyring, vile, clueless, out-of-touch, boneheaded, disturbing and toxic post." Others slammed the comment after it was shared more widely.

He told The Hollywood Reporter later that month that he was "very sorry."

"I'm bored at the moment, and I write a lot of jokes. I'm a comedy writer," he said. "I was brain dead in that moment, and I picked the wrong piece of clip art to go with a silly joke about killing myself after 100 days on the picket line. I Googled the words 'cartoon man hanging from a tree' and that's what came up. I really think this has been a misunderstanding."