Friday, April 27

An Open letter to Charlie Rose

Mr. Rose,
       I miss your show. I miss your insightful interviews with everyone from celebrities to heads of state, but most of all what I miss is the respect I had for you as a journalist.
      When I heard of the accusation of harassment, I thought it was overreaction, then I read the Washington Post and knew it was all too true because your behavior is all too common.
      When is society going to let men act beyond the narrow minded role of aggressor, winner and dominator in every interaction? When are we all going to learn respect each other instead of seeing trophies or something to fear? Why does a mature man act like an arrested juvenile? Is this really the only way men think they can gain power over women -with unwanted sexual advances? What were you thinking?
      "I am greatly embarrassed." Charlie Rose said "I have behaved insensitively at times, and I accept responsibility for that, though I do not believe that all of these allegations are accurate, I always felt that I pursued shared feelings though I now realize that I was mistaken."
      You can keep your retirement, you deserve it, with a sad stain on an otherwise great legacy. Or you can find atonement and continue to be a real voice in journalism we so desperately need in this time of chaos. You can do this confronting this issue. You can interviewDan Harmon and ask him about the self examination of his abusive behavior with a female co worker and how she forgave him. You can explore the effect of the degrading conditions women have endured in the workplace for decades and help everyone understand this cultural sexism. You can do this because you know how to get  people to speak the truth.
      “I do believe that someone as brilliant as Charlie could have sought help and documented the process,” says former assistant and accuser Kyle Godfrey-Ryan. “He could have dived into research about the male ego and tried to get to the root of why this pattern of abuse is so common with positions of power. He could have used this moment to change the state of play in journalism.”
Speak up Mr. Rose and be a mensch again. Owe up to this and join the liberation.
             Sincerely,
            Alisa McLaughlin

Charlie Rose Metoo sexual harassment Dan Harmon

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