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Movements, leaders, victories and the continuing fight for equality.
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Explore the people, places, events, achievements, struggles and stories that shaped our journey.
Movements, leaders, victories and the continuing fight for equality.
Innovation, patents, science, technology and world-changing contributions.
Pioneers, champions, Negro Leagues, records, activism and excellence.
Meet the people whose lives, choices and achievements shaped the journey.
Black towns, communities, institutions and places where history happened.
Moments that changed communities, movements, institutions and the nation.
Wilmington, North Carolina once had a thriving Black middle class and an elected interracial government. In 1898 white supremacists used violence to overthrow that government, kill Black residents and drive many others from the city.
MORE →Reflects the personal views, recollections, and perspective of the author, Mike Davis.
This is a personal recollection on the Move fire on May 13, 1985
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The Weinstein effect is the phenomenon in which famous or powerful figures previously thought to be immune from most consequences due to their fame are later accused or convicted of sexual abuse, harassment, or misconduct.[1] The term "Weinstein effect" came into use in October 2017, when media outlets began reporting on sexual abuse perpetrated by film producer Harvey Weinstein.[2]
The effect is closely related to the #MeToo movement and contributed to the movement’s growth. The two events are categorized by a cascade of allegations of abuse, harassment, and misconduct against many notable figures such as Richard Dreyfuss, Sean Combs, R. Kelly, Kevin Spacey, Charlie Rose, Louis C.K., Dustin Hoffman, Matt Lauer, John Lasseter, Danny Masterson, John Kricfalusi, Dan Schneider, T.J. Miller, Bill Cosby, Charlie Sheen, Justin Roiland, Neil Gaiman, Gary Glitter, Les Moonves, Garrison Keillor, Vic Mignogna, Asia Argento, U.S. Representative John Conyers, U.S. Senator Al Franken, former Senate candidate and Chief Justice of the Alabama Supreme Court Roy Moore, U.S. Associate Justice Brett Kavanaugh, and Welsh politician Carl Sargeant.[3][4][5]
In July 2016, Fox News television host Gretchen Carlson filed a lawsuit against the station's chairman Roger Ailes, which led to his removal and encouraged journalists to pursue rumors about Weinstein's conduct and political commentator Bill O'Reilly. Similar revelations and a lawsuit led to O'Reilly being fired in April 2017. Both Ailes (who died in May 2017) and O'Reilly denied any wrongdoing.[6]
On October 5, 2017, The New York Times broke the first reports of decades of sexual misconduct claims against film producer Harvey Weinstein. On October 10, 2017, journalist Ronan Farrow reported further allegations that Weinstein had sexually assaulted or harassed thirteen, and raped three women.[7]
Weinstein was immediately dismissed from The Weinstein Company, expelled from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and other professional associations. Weinstein had suppressed these cases through confidential financial settlements and nondisclosure agreements, as was common for celebrity sexual harassment cases, before journalists aired the story. Over eighty accusers came forward against him, including many well-known actresses.[8]
Jim Rutenberg of The New York Times said that the Weinstein scandal precipitated a "national reckoning" against sexual harassment and assault in the United States,[9] which became known as the Weinstein effect.[6] USA Today wrote that 2017 was the year in which "sexual misconduct became a fireable offense".[6]
Women and men aired claims of sexual misconduct in workplaces across multiple industries, leading to the swift international condemnation or removal of many men in positions of power. On Twitter, the #MeToo campaign also encouraged hundreds of thousands of people to share their stories.[6][10]
Examples of the Weinstein effect are numerous. Many notable people in entertainment and music have been implicated:
American rapper Sean "Diddy" Combs has been called "the Harvey Weinstein of the music industry".[34][35]
In the journalism industry, allegations led to the firing of editors, publishers, executives, and hosts, including high-profile television figures such as Charlie Rose, Mark Halperin, and Matt Lauer.[2] In politics, accusations of varying degrees of severity were made against U.S. House Representative John Conyers (D-MI) and U.S. Senator Al Franken (D-MN), both of whom resigned their seats in Congress, and Chief Justice of the Alabama Supreme Court Roy Moore (R-AL), who lost his 2017 bid for election to the United States Senate.[2] Celebrity chefs Mario Batali and John Besh were also removed.[2]
In technology, the Weinstein effect went underway when Intel CEO Brian Krzanich was investigated after being accused of violating the company's anti-fraternization policy over a consensual relationship he engaged in with an employee. Regardless, although this incident was ultimately not counted as sexually violent, and with the #MeToo movement still in effect, Krzanich was ousted as Intel's CEO on June 21, 2018.[36][37][38]
Two supporters of the #MeToo movement were also accused. CBS chairman and CEO Leslie Moonves was one of Hollywood's most prominent supporters of the movement and a founding member of the "Commission on Sexual Harassment and Advancing Equality in the Workplace", formed in late 2017 to "tackle the broad culture of abuse and power disparity".[39][40][3][4][41] On July 27, 2018, six women, including actress Illeana Douglas, accused him of sexually harassing them.[39] On August 19, 2018, an article published in The New York Times detailed allegations that Asia Argento sexually assaulted Jimmy Bennett, a then-17-year-old actor and musician, in a California hotel in 2013, and arranged to pay $380,000 to her accuser.[42][43][5] Bennett was under California's age of consent, which is 18 years of age, and says he was given alcohol under the age of 21.[5][44][45] Argento was a leading Weinstein accuser and prominent #MeToo movement leader.[5][44][45]
The Weinstein effect was felt outside the United States, especially but not solely in the English-speaking world. In the United Kingdom, allegations of sexual misconduct against many British politicians became a public scandal involving dozens of women accusers across decades and political parties. It led to the resignations of Defence Secretary Michael Fallon, Cabinet Secretary Damian Green, and Welsh minister Carl Sargeant (who died by suicide four days after his dismissal).[46] In January 2018, reports of sexual harassment at the high-society Presidents Club charity dinner caused another scandal. In Canada, accusations against Just for Laughs comedy festival founder Gilbert Rozon led to his resignation, and 15 people accused Quebec radio host Éric Salvail of sexual misconduct. Broadcaster and former baseball player Gregg Zaun was fired.[47]
American journalists in conversation at NPR spoke of the allegations feeling like a tipping point for societal treatment of sexual misconduct.[48] They distinguished the moment from prior sexual misconduct public debates by the public trust in the accusers, who in this case were celebrities familiar to the public, rather than the accusers in prior cases, in which the accusers were unknown and became famous for their testimony. Social media provides a platform for women to share their experiences and encouragement on a scale that had not existed during prior public debates.[48] The state of California is considering legislation to ban closed door sexual harassment settlements.[6]
Two columnists of the USA Today expressed doubt that the trend of public opinion would hold, citing open, public cases with few consequences, such as R. Kelly (the column was made before Surviving R. Kelly aired and Kelly's subsequent arrest in early 2019) and Donald Trump.[6] The Weinstein effect also caused some to question the place of Bill Clinton within the Democratic Party due to the sexual misconduct allegations against him.[49][50][51] Journalist Jenny Nordberg published a New York Times article in protest against the prosecution and conviction of actress Cissi Wallin, one of the many accusers of journalist Fredrik Virtanen, and her criticism of the difficulties the Me Too movement faces in Sweden[citation needed]
Moonves has also been a vocal supporter of the #MeToo movement
Among the list of the commission's members are: ... — Les Moonves, chairman/CEO of CBS Corp
A public proponent of the #MeToo movement, Moonves
Sportsnet has fired Blue Jays broadcaster Gregg Zaun for "inappropriate behaviour." Rogers Media said "multiple female employees" complained about him. (The Canadian Press)
Source: Wikipedia. Article content is retrieved live through the MediaWiki API.
Matthew Todd Lauer (; born December 30, 1957) is a former American television news personality, best known for his work with NBC News. After serving as a local news personality, in New York City, on WNBC, his first national exposure was as the news anchor for NBC's Today, from 1994 to 1997. In 1997, Lauer was moved from the news desk to the host's chair. He was co-anchor of Today, from 1997 to 2017. He was also a frequent contributor to the evening news magazine Dateline NBC. With NBC, Lauer hosted the annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade and co-hosted the opening ceremonies of several Olympic Games. In November 2017, Lauer's contract was terminated by NBC, after NBC reported receiving "a detailed complaint from a colleague about inappropriate sexual behavior in the workplace" and added that NBC had "reason to believe this may not have been an isolated incident".
Today (also called The Today Show) is an American morning television show that airs weekdays from 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. on NBC. The program debuted on January 14, 1952. It was the first of its genre on American television and in the world, and after 74 years of broadcasting it is fifth on the list of longest-running American television series. Originally a two-hour program airing weekdays from 7:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m., it expanded to Sundays in 1987 and Saturdays in 1992. The weekday broadcast expanded to three hours in 2000, and to four hours in 2007 (though over time, the third and fourth hours became distinct entities). Today's dominance was virtually unchallenged by the other networks until the late 1980s, when it was overtaken by ABC's Good Morning America. Today retook the Nielsen TV ratings lead the week of December 11, 1995, and held onto that position for 852 consecutive weeks until the week of April 9, 2012, when Good Morning America topped it again. Today maintained its No. 2 status behind GMA from the summer of 2012 until it regained the lead in the aftermath of anchor Matt Lauer's departure in November 2017. In 2002, Today was ranked No. 17 on TV Guide's 50 Greatest TV Shows of All Time. The entertainment magazine Variety reported that 2016 advertising revenue during the first two hours of the show was $508.8 million. On July 15, 2020, NBC launched Today All Day, a 24-hour digital streaming extension of the program available through its website and Peacock.
Bryant Charles Gumbel (born September 29, 1948) is a retired American television journalist and sportscaster. He was best known for his 15 years as co-host of NBC's Today. His older brother was sportscaster Greg Gumbel. From 1995 to 2023, he hosted HBO's acclaimed investigative series Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel, which has been rated as "flat out TV's best sports program" by the Los Angeles Times. It won a Peabody Award in 2012. Gumbel was hired by NBC Sports in the fall of 1975 as co-host of its National Football League pre-game show GrandStand with Jack Buck. From 1975 until January 1982 (when he left to do The Today Show), he hosted numerous sporting events for NBC including Major League Baseball, college basketball and the National Football League. He returned to sportscasting for NBC when he hosted the prime time coverage of the 1988 Summer Olympics from Seoul and the PGA Tour in 1990. NBC News made Gumbel the principal anchor of Today beginning September 27, 1982, and broadcast from Vietnam, Vatican City, Europe, South America, and much of the United States between 1984 and 1989. Gumbel's work on Today earned him several Emmys and a large fanbase. He is the third longest serving co-host of Today, after former hosts Matt Lauer and Katie Couric. He left the show on January 3, 1997, after 15 years. Gumbel moved to CBS, where he hosted various shows before becoming co-host of the network's morning show The Early Show on November 1, 1999. Gumbel was hosting The Early Show on the morning of September 11, 2001. He was the first to announce the September 11 attacks to CBS viewers. Gumbel left CBS and The Early Show on May 17, 2002.
The Weinstein effect is the phenomenon in which famous or powerful figures previously thought to be immune from most consequences due to their fame are later accused or convicted of sexual abuse, harassment, or misconduct. The term "Weinstein effect" came into use in October 2017, when media outlets began reporting on sexual abuse perpetrated by film producer Harvey Weinstein. The effect is closely related to the #MeToo movement and contributed to the movement’s growth. The two events are categorized by a cascade of allegations of abuse, harassment, and misconduct against many notable figures such as Richard Dreyfuss, Sean Combs, R. Kelly, Kevin Spacey, Charlie Rose, Louis C.K., Dustin Hoffman, Matt Lauer, John Lasseter, Danny Masterson, John Kricfalusi, Dan Schneider, T.J. Miller, Bill Cosby, Charlie Sheen, Justin Roiland, Neil Gaiman, Gary Glitter, Les Moonves, Garrison Keillor, Vic Mignogna, Asia Argento, U.S. Representative John Conyers, U.S. Senator Al Franken, former Senate candidate and Chief Justice of the Alabama Supreme Court Roy Moore, U.S. Associate Justice Brett Kavanaugh, and Welsh politician Carl Sargeant.
Before the 1921 destruction of Tulsa’s Greenwood District, Black residents had created a remarkable center of business and community life. The district included stores, professional offices, entertainment venues and homes owned by Black citizens. Understanding Greenwood means learning what was built—not only what was burned.
MORE →The Greenwood District.
