RECENTLY RONAN FARROW UNCOVERED MORE ALLEGATIONS AGAINST
HARVEY WEINSTEIN, OF COURSE IT INVOLVES SEXUAL HARASSMENT,
ASSAULT, AND IN SOME CASES RATE.
NOW WE ARE FINDING INFORMATION BASED ON EMPLOYEES THAT WORK ON
NBC THAT RONAN FARROW WASN'T ALLOWED TO REPORT THAT
STORY OR PUBLISH THAT STORY WITH NBC.
THERE WERE EXECUTIVES THAT SEEM TO GO OUT OF THEIR WAY TO
PREVENT.
IF YOU GUYS HAVE A RED RONAN'S PIECE IN THE NEW YORKER YOU WILL
KNOW THAT THERE IS A TON OF DETAILED INFORMATION THERE, IT
IS LIKE A 10 PAGE PEACE WITH SO MANY DIFFERENT DETAILS AND
PEOPLE THAT HE INTERVIEWED, SOME EVEN SPOKE ON RECORD.
AND ALSO HIS PEACE WAS THE ONE THAT RELEASED AUDIO FEATURING
THE FILIPINO ADDRESS AND THE STING OPERATION THAT WAS DONE ON
WEINSTEIN THROUGH THE NYPD.
THAT WAS ALL STUFF THAT FOR SOME REASON NBC DECIDED DID NOT
WANT TO COVER.
>> FIRST OF ALL IS IT POSSIBLE
THAT YOUR REPORTING WOULD PASS
ONE PLACE BUT NOT ANOTHER.
AND THE PLACE THAT IT DOESN'T PASS DOESN'T MEAN THERE ARE
BETTER JOURNALIST, THERE JUST MIGHT BE DIFFERENT STANDARDS.
JUST BECAUSE THE STORY DIDN'T RUN DOESN'T MEAN THAT IT
WAS BY DEFINITION TRUE AND THERE WAS A COVER-UP.
SOMETIMES THEY ARE RIGHT NOT TO RUN A STORY BECAUSE YOU
DIDN'T HAVE ENOUGH EVIDENCE.
THIS IS NOT ONE OF THOSE TIMES.
FIRST OFF, THE REPORTERS THAT REPORTED THIS FOR THE HUFFINGTON
POST TALK TO 12 PEOPLE INSIDE AND OUTSIDE OF NBC NEWS.
THEY ARE REPORTING ON WHAT HAPPENED INTERNALLY, AND IT
IS PRETTY ROCKSOLID.
WHEN YOU LOOK AT THAT REPORTING IT IS NOT PRETTY.
ANA IS RIGHT THAT BY APRIL THE HAD TWO GIANT SCOOPS.
EITHER ONE OF THOSE IF CONFIRMED WOULD'VE BEEN ENOUGH TO RUN
ON THEIR OWN.
THE AUDIOTAPE ñ HE ADMITS THAT HE DID GROPE HER THE DAY
BEFORE, THAT A SEXUAL ASSAULT.
OF COURSE YOU CAN RUN THAT STORY, OF COURSE YOU CAN
BECAUSE YOU KNOW IT IS THE TAPE.
YOU HAVE ROSE MCGOWAN, A VERY FAMOUS ACTRESS AND NOW
DIRECTOR SEEING IT ON TAPE AS WELL.
IF IT WAS JUST ONE PERSON'S ACCUSATION ñ AND BY JULY HE HAD
ON CAMERA INTERVIEWS WITH ACCUSERS AND INTERVIEWS WITH
FOUR FEMALE AND MALE FORMER MIRAMAX AND WEINSTEIN
COMPANY EXECUTIVES.
THAT IS A BOMBSHELL.
IT IS COOPERATED 18 DIFFERENT WAYS.
>>IS ONE OF THE MOST DETAILED INVESTIGATIVE REPORTS I
HAVE EVER READ IT.
WHAT WAS ALSO INTERESTING WAS THAT THIS PARTICULAR STORY
REQUIRED MUCH MORE SCRUTINY WITHIN NBC NEWS THAN ANY OTHER
REPORTING OR STORY.
THE STORY NEEDED TO BE APPROVED BY EXECUTIVES WHO PREVIOUSLY
WOULD HAVE TO APPROVE ANY STORIES TO BEGIN WITH, INCLUDING
ANDY LACK AND STEVE BURKE.
ALL OF A SUDDEN THERE IS THIS EXTRA
LAYER OF SCRUTINY AND I WANT TO BE CLEAR, THIS WHOLE STORY
INVOLVING WEINSTEIN FIRST BROKE LAST WEEK WITH THE NEW YORK
TIMES PIECE AND FOLLOWING THAT PIECE ABC, CBS, MAJOR NEWS
NETWORKS COVERED IT BUT NBC DIDN'T.
>>IT GETS SLIGHTLY WORSE.
FIRST OFF IT IS NOT CRAZY FOR A NEWS STORY TO GO ALL THE WAY TO
THE TOP OF THE NEWS CHAIN WHICH IS ANDY LACK, BUT IF IT WAS A
STORY THAT HAD NO POWER AND YOU ALREADY HAVE HALF A DOZEN
SOURCES, PEOPLE ON TAPE, A TAPE THAT CAME FROM THE NYPD TO BEGIN
WITH, AND YOU HAVE IT CORROBORATED UP AND DOWN YOU
WOULD BOTHER BRINGING IT TO ANDY, YOU WOULD BRING IT TO THE
TOP OF THE FOOD CHAIN.
BUT UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES DOES IT MAKE SENSE TO BRING IT TO THE
CEO.
IT MAKES YOU WONDER.
TO BRING IT TO A NON-NEWS PERSON YOU ARE OBVIOUSLY MAKING A
BUSINESS DECISION THERE.
>>THAT IS RIGHT.
>>AND THEY KILLED IT.
IT'S NOT THE ONLY TIME NBC NEWS HAS KILLED A GIANT STORY
ABOUT SEXUAL ASSAULT.
THEY HAD THE ORIGINAL GRAB HIM BY THE PUSSY TAPE, AND THEY
WOULD NOT RUN IT.
THE WASHINGTON POST EVENTUALLY RAN IT.
THAT IS TWO DIFFERENT TIMES REALLY POWERFUL GUYS WHO DID
SEXUAL HARASSMENT THAT NBC NEWS SPIKED.
THAT IS DEVASTATING.
ANOTHER ONE OF OPPENHEIMER'S QUOTES THAT I
THOUGHT WAS SUPER INTERESTING.
HE
GAVE THIS HILARIOUS QUOTE.
>> THAT IS A PREPOSTEROUS CLAIM.
YOU DIDN'T RUN IT UP TO THE CEO BECAUSE HE IS NOT A
NATIONALLY RECOGNIZED FIGURE.
THE GUY COMMITS SEXUAL HARASSMENT, IT IS 24
SEVEN FOR THE LAST WEEK.
IF HE WASN'T A NATIONALLY RECOGNIZED FIGURE AND WAS SOME
RANDOM TEACHER SOMEWHERE ñ THAT IS A PREPOSTEROUS CLAIM.
WHEN YOU MAKE THAT CLAIM WE REALIZE WHAT YOUR INTENT WAS.
YOUR INTENT WAS I DON'T WANT TO UPSET THE POWERFUL WITCHES NBC
101.
>>IT IS JUST SO PATHETIC IT IS SO EMBARRASSING.
>> THEY DO THIS AT MSNBC WITH THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY.
DON'T UPSET PEOPLE IN POWER.
THEN WHEN TRUMP COMES INTO OFFICE, WHAT DO THEY DO?
IF NBC DOES ANYTHING AT ALL, IT IS TO NOT UPSET PEOPLE IN POWER.
OPPENHEIM'S QUOTE IS THE MOST IRONIC AND HYPOCRITICAL
QUOTE I HAVE EVER SEEN IN NEWS.
JUST OWN UP TO WHAT HAPPENED HERE, AND IT AIN'T PRETTY.