Lily Ali Professor DeVries MEDIA 214 - Case Study 1 September 13th 2023 Case Study: Publicity Punctures a Powerful Pariah 1. Had you been PR director of The Weinstien Company, what would you have done relative to allegations of Harvey Weinstien’s sexual harassment? To be honest, I would’ve left exactly like his original public relations firms did once the news broke exposing him. To play devil's advocate, my first action would be creating a game plan and speaking to Weinstien first to understand the gravity of these allegations and what his end goal is when fighting them. I would mainly focus not on the allegations but on the positive impacts Weinstien has had on the world of film and emphasize instances in which he was empowering or helping women and men. I think it would also be important to speak on his character and not establish that he did or didn’t do something but that his character now is not the same as it once was before. Despite all these efforts, I don’t think it would be effective enough to combat the amount of people speaking out against him and the victims' testimonies as well. 2. Had you been public relations director for NBC, what would you have advised relative to airing Ronan Farrow’s story on Weinstein? If I was a part of NBC’s public relations team, I would have allowed the publication of Farrow’s story on the basis that this would bring a lot of traction to the company and it is an important story that needs to be heard. As a company, NBC should stand with sexual assault survivors and believing victims, especially from a credible and well researched source such as one of our own reporters. Additionally they should stand with the concept of well sourced and exposé journalism that comes from their own reporters, especially with a case this large. 3. What would you have advised Lisa Bloom regarding continuing to work for Weinstien? David Boies? Sitrick & Company? I would have advised Bloom to leave when the allegations first came out, it baffles me that she stayed for as long as she did. With her background, she could have potentially been a great guiding factor in helping Weinstien’s image but it isn’t and wasn’t enough overall to alleviate him from the consequences of his actions. Her own personal motives clouded her judgment and this eventually caught up to her when she eventually decided to leave. She could have taken her time with Weinstien and capitalized off it in many different ways, especially with the background she has. 4. What recommendations would you make to the MeToo campaign going forward? To be honest, I don’t have any recommendations that haven’t already been made in regard to the MeToo campaign. I would place emphasis on empowering these women’s voices and emphasize that there is no need to be scared of these powerful individuals when speaking out against them, Weinstien’s case is an example of why. I would also begin to place some emphasis on male and non-binary individuals who have been victimized and need their voices heard, not just women. But with this being said, it cannot take away from the inherently violent and sexualized female experience that exists in a highly patriarchal and capitalist society that breeds victims and abusers based on wants and needs.
