After several women accused journalist Mark Halperin of sexual harassment during his time as political director at ABC News, Penguin Press announced Thursday it has canceled plans to publish an updated version of his book Game Change.
Halperin was co-authoring the book, featuring stories from the 2016 presidential election, with John Heilemann. HBO announced earlier in the day it is no longer moving forward with a miniseries about the election that was going to be based on this book, saying in a statement, "HBO has no tolerance for sexual harassment within the company or its productions." Halperin is also a senior political analyst at MSNBC, and the network said he is leaving his role "until the questions around his past conduct are fully understood."
The women who came forward and spoke to CNN and The Washington Post shared similar stories, with several saying Halperin propositioned them for sex while on the campaign trail, and others saying he pressed his genitals against them. He denies doing so, but in a statement to CNN said he "did pursue relationships with women that I worked with, including some junior to me. I now understand from these accounts that my behavior was inappropriate and caused others pain. For that, I am deeply sorry and I apologize."
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