SHE SAID: Breaking the Sexual Harassment Story That Helped Ignite a Movement by Jodi Kantor, Megan Twohey

She Said by Jodi Kantor Megan Twohey

Ever since reading Bad Blood and watching Spotlight I have been in awe of great journalism. She Said was a wonderful addition, and a must read book, especially since, like Bad Blood, the article that started it all, was only recently published, October 5th 2017. Interestingly enough, there was another journalist that worked on the same topic, Ronan Farrow, who wrote for The New Yorker, and published his article a few days later, on October 10th 2017. I haven’t read his article yet, but I’m intending to read his book Catch and Kill: Lies, Spies, and a Conspiracy to Protect Predators this year. Both Jodi Kantor, Megan Twohey as well as Ronan Farrow won the Pulitzer Prize for Public Service for their journalism about Weinstein.

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For many years, reporters had tried to get to the truth about Harvey Weinstein’s treatment of women. Rumors of wrongdoing had long circulated. But in 2017, when Jodi Kantor and Megan Twohey began their investigation into the prominent Hollywood producer for the New York Times, his name was still synonymous with power. During months of confidential interviews with top actresses, former Weinstein employees, and other sources, many disturbing and long-buried allegations were unearthed, and a web of onerous secret payouts and nondisclosure agreements was revealed. These shadowy settlements had long been used to hide sexual harassment and abuse, but with a breakthrough reporting technique Kantor and Twohey helped to expose it. But Weinstein had evaded scrutiny in the past, and he was not going down without a fight; he employed a team of high-profile lawyers, private investigators, and other allies to thwart the investigation. When Kantor and Twohey were finally able to convince some sources to go on the record, a dramatic final showdown between Weinstein and the New York Times was set in motion.

Nothing could have prepared Kantor and Twohey for what followed the publication of their initial Weinstein story on October 5, 2017. Within days, a veritable Pandora’s box of sexual harassment and abuse was opened. Women all over the world came forward with their own traumatic stories. Over the next twelve months, hundreds of men from every walk of life and industry were outed following allegations of wrongdoing. But did too much change–or not enough? Those questions hung in the air months later as Brett Kavanaugh was nominated to the Supreme Court, and Christine Blasey Ford came forward to testify that he had assaulted her decades earlier. Kantor and Twohey, who had unique access to Ford and her team, bring to light the odyssey that led her to come forward, the overwhelming forces that came to bear on her, and what happened after she shared her allegation with the world.

In the tradition of great investigative journalism, She Said tells a thrilling story about the power of truth, with shocking new information from hidden sources. Kantor and Twohey describe not only the consequences of their reporting for the #MeToo movement, but the inspiring and affecting journeys of the women who spoke up–for the sake of other women, for future generations, and for themselves.

She Said by Jodi Kantor Megan Twohey

MY THOUGHTS

There is really no doubt in my mind that I don’t have the right words to convey how important this book is, and that it needs to be read. If you go to GR and check out the title you’ll find many more eloquent reviews than mine. But let’s take a look at the numbers.

Rating 4.41  ·  16,699 ratings  ·  1,990 reviews

I know that not everyone puts as much weight on Goodreads rating as I do, but if I’m honest, it works for me, and I have a 80% success rate with it.

Ever since publication on September 10th 2019 I’ve seen SHE SAID all over Bookstagram, and later that year it was a Best Nonfiction nominee at the GR choice awards. Moreover every review I read so far has been glowing, and ended with “You have to read this book!”.

Following the news, the topic of She Said was known to me. I’ve seen daily news articles about Weinstein in the last quarter of 2017. There was no escaping him. BUT I had no idea about everything that came before the article, and how much time and effort went into it, much less how hard it was for the victims to come forward.

Reading about the journalistic research that both, Jodi and Meagan spent hours on, was fascinating. It boggled my mind how much double checking, calling people, rechecking and calling some more went into each step they took. Just finding ONE person willing to talk to them was an ordeal. Finding and talking to all these women that were willing to go on record, willing to speak about something that happened to them but also at the same to so many others, was heart-breaking.

The saying “You are not Alone” couldn’t have been more fitting in this case. The pattern of what Weinstein did became so obvious when the victims finally started talking. He isolated and violated women from all stations in life over three decades and in two different countries. And he did it in the same way, again and again. And most astounding, he actually thought he could get away with anything, because money bought silence.

But it became obvious pretty quickly that there was much more going on then just what Weinstein did to the women. The many lawyers and their casual attitude towards hush money. The typical old boy club. Nepotism. Promises and threats. And the many young women that were just too scared to speak up.

And the worst of all is that Weinstein is only one of these predators. There are so many more out there who believe that they can do anything they please, because money means power. I just hope they are getting their own reckoning soon.

I read this book in two days, from Saturday afternoon, to Sunday morning. Non-fiction is not my preferred genre, but it’s one I’m going to read more this year. Still, I usually prefer to listen to non-fiction audiobooks, but I already picked up the physical book from the library a couple weeks ago, and it had to be returned this week, so I thought why not try it now. And I’m glad I did.

I was fascinate by the book, and want to read more about the topic. After some research, here are some of the books that stood out, and which I’ll be reading soon.

The Witches Are Coming by Lindy West | Catch and Kill: Lies, Spies, and a Conspiracy to Protect Predators by Ronan Farrow | Know My Name: A Memoir by Chanel Miller

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She Said by Jodi Kantor Megan Twohey