Looking for a story to tell, NBC reporter Ronan Farrow decided to follow a lead he had previously heard about. Rumors abounded that media mogul Harvey Weinstein was a sexual predator, preying on actresses and other women. There were hushed reports of rapes and other abuses, but his position of power and privilege, along with his relationships with the rich and famous, were burying these stories through intimidation, non-disclosure agreements, and hush money.
As Farrow started researching these allegations, he uncovered systematic abuse, and more and more women started to talk with him about their experiences. At the same time, Weinstein heard that a journalist was investigating, and he used the same intimidation tactics he had employed before, sending lawyers, and hiring shadowy private detectives to stop Farrow, or at least undermine his story. At the same time, his own bosses were throwing wrenches in his research, attempting to stop what they told him was not a story that would interest people.
Eventually the research revealed that Weinstein had serially raped and abused women for over thirty years, and despite lawsuit threats and non-disclosure agreements, the whole affair was published in the New Yorker in 2017, bringing down one of the most powerful movie studio head. The investigation also showed that Weinstein had colluded with Farrow's bosses at NBC to kill the story, and that other powerful men were involved in similar abuse stories.
The revelations about Weinstein led him to be convicted of crimes, while many other powerful men were brought down by similar actions, from Matt Lauer at NBC to CBS president Leslie Moonves. Farrow's work helped shed light on the dark underbelly of abuse that took place over decades by people who thought they could get away with it.
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