Commentary
Harvey Weinstein Trial Will Test #MeToo Reporting
- by January 3, 2020
The court proceeding
is likely to be a media spectacle, with more than 150 reporters obtaining press credentials to cover a trial that will feature testimony from six accusers, including "Sopranos" actor Annabella
Sciorra.
The trial likely never would have happened without the enterprising efforts by The New York Times and The New Yorker to publish a story about the
alleged crimes by a wealthy and politically well connected movie producer.
Since they first published their bombshell reports in October 2017, more than 80 women have come
forward to accuse Weinstein of rape or harassment over several decades.
The outcome of the trial is uncertain, with some observers predicting Weinstein may be found not guilty
if a jury sufficiently doubts the credibility of his accusers.
Weinstein's lawyers are likely to present evidence to support his repeated denials of allegations of
nonconsensual sex.
Regardless of the trial's outcome, I recommend journalists read the personal accounts of the reporters that broke the Weinstein story. NYT
reporters Jodi Kantor and Megan Twohey provide a gripping account of their Pulitzer Prize-winning work in the book "She Said."
Reporter Ronan Farrow tells the exasperating
tale of his ordeal to break the story for NBC News, whose management appeared to buckle under pressure from Weinstein and his lawyers. Farrow brought his reporting to The New Yorker, where
editor-in-chief David Remnick recognized a compelling story that needed to be told.
Weinstein has the right to a fair trial, but a guilty verdict against him will help to
affirm the efforts by a handful of journalists who overcame the efforts to silence their reporting.
advertisement
advertisement
