Matt Lauer sounds pretty happy about The New York Times' criticism of Ronan Farrow
Matt Lauer has fired off a lengthy op-ed going after Ronan Farrow, accusing the Pulitzer Prize–winning reporter of "shoddy journalism."
The disgraced former NBC host, who was accused of sexual misconduct by numerous women and fired in 2017, published his op-ed Tuesday on Mediaite, attacking Farrow, who interviewed a woman who alleged Lauer raped her at the 2014 Sochi Olympics. The interview was for Ronan's 2019 book Catch and Kill. Lauer, who denies Brooke Nevils' rape allegation, claims Farrow did not properly fact-check the book and acted "as Brooke's advocate, not as a journalist investigating her claims."
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Lauer goes on to claim he personally reached out to some people referenced in Catch and Kill who supposedly told him they were not contacted for fact-checking, and he accuses Farrow of using misleading language in the book.
Though Lauer writes he'd been working on the op-ed, intending to release it last year, it comes partially in response to an article Sunday by New York Times media columnist Ben Smith. The Times column is surprisingly critical of Farrow, which clearly pleased Lauer because he quotes it throughout. Smith wrote that Farrow "does not always follow the typical journalistic imperatives of corroboration and rigorous disclosure" and suggests "conspiracies that are tantalizing but he cannot prove." Farrow said in response, "I stand by my reporting."
Following the Mediaite op-ed's publication, commentator Evan Siegfried blasted Lauer, tweeting that he "raped my friend @BrookeNevils and is now trying to rewrite history."
-
Ski town strikers fight rising cost of livingThe Explainer Telluride is the latest ski resort experiencing an instructor strike
-
‘Space is one of the few areas of bipartisan agreement in Washington’Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
How robust is the rule of law in the US?In the Spotlight John Roberts says the Constitution is ‘unshaken,’ but tensions loom at the Supreme Court
-
‘One Battle After Another’ wins Critics Choice honorsSpeed Read Paul Thomas Anderson’s latest film, which stars Leonardo DiCaprio, won best picture at the 31st Critics Choice Awards
-
A peek inside Europe’s luxury new sleeper busThe Week Recommends Overnight service with stops across Switzerland and the Netherlands promises a comfortable no-fly adventure
-
Son arrested over killing of Rob and Michele ReinerSpeed Read Nick, the 32-year-old son of Hollywood director Rob Reiner, has been booked for the murder of his parents
-
Rob Reiner, wife dead in ‘apparent homicide’speed read The Reiners, found in their Los Angeles home, ‘had injuries consistent with being stabbed’
-
Hungary’s Krasznahorkai wins Nobel for literatureSpeed Read László Krasznahorkai is the author of acclaimed novels like ‘The Melancholy of Resistance’ and ‘Satantango’
-
Primatologist Jane Goodall dies at 91Speed Read She rose to fame following her groundbreaking field research with chimpanzees
-
Florida erases rainbow crosswalk at Pulse nightclubSpeed Read The colorful crosswalk was outside the former LGBTQ nightclub where 49 people were killed in a 2016 shooting
-
Trump says Smithsonian too focused on slavery's illsSpeed Read The president would prefer the museum to highlight 'success,' 'brightness' and 'the future'
