My 2 cents (which are most likely worth less than that) is the "She actively chose either to not be in the loop" comment is spot on.

I've worked for terribly toxic organizations in the past and it's not always due to the one sitting in the big chair. With some genuinely good/nice people leading toxic corporations it usually fell on the #2.

#2 got to play the part of bad (toxic) cop so the #1 could be good for the brand. Not trying to let Ellen or my past CEOs off the hook at all - they were/are very "nice" people who don't want to get their hands dirty.

Now that she knows (or at least, now that she knows we know) it's time to change the culture over there - can't pretend you don't know what's going on now...