Steve Hilton: The People vs. NBC News
Steve Hilton says NBC News is run by people who actively worked to keep Harvey Weinstein's crimes a secret.
With Harvey Weinstein convicted by a New York jury of rape and sexual assault last week, Steve Hilton shed light on two NBC News executives who refused to report on 13 accusations of sexual assault against the movie mogul.
In a FoxNews.com exclusive, "The Next Revolution" host broke down Weinstein's far-reaching influence, and the protection he received from the highest levels of NBC News.
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"For decades powerful figures in the media and entertainment industries chose to ignore or cover up his evil."
"Finally, the monster faced accountability. A jury found Harvey Weinstein guilty of rape and sexual abuse ... but it's not just Weinstein who should be on trial," Hilton began. "For decades, powerful figures in the media and entertainment industries chose to ignore or cover up his evil."
Before the accusations against Weinstein were made public in 2017, investigative journalist Ronan Farrow -- then an NBC News employee -- had been working on his own expose of the Miramax co-founder.
Ronan Farrow praised women who came forward against Harvey Weinstein.
"He was working on this for NBC News, but instead of airing what would later turn out to be a Pulitzer Prize-winning story, the network tried to prevent it from ever seeing the light of day," Hilton explained.
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NBC has long claimed that Farrow’s reporting was not fit to air as presented. So Farrow took his work to The New Yorker, where it was published and earned the coveted journalism award.
Hilton credited Farrow’s 2019 book, “Catch and Kill,” which detailed his theory on why NBC passed on the bombshell story, for exposing that "NBC News is run by people who actively worked to keep Harvey Weinstein's crimes a secret," singling out embattled NBC News President Noah Oppenheim and "sleazy creep" Andy Lack, the chairman of NBC News and MSNBC, for their efforts to silence Farrow.
"NBC News is run by people who actively worked to keep Harvey Weinstein's crimes a secret."
"I want to show you who they really are at NBC News ... how its two leaders - Noah Oppenheim and Andy Lack - became apologists for and enablers of rape and sexual assault, and why they must now be fired."
"Tonight," he added, "We put them on trial in "The people vs. NBC News."
As the network attempted to discredit Farrow, Lack reportedly sent a letter to staffers noting issues with his reporting. The move was just the first of Lack and Oppenheim's efforts to downplay Farrow’s reporting.
"It's no surprise that Noah Oppenheim was pals with Harvey Weinstein," Hilton said. "They would sit together at industry dinners, exchange cute little gifts, stay in touch."
Hilton added that the duo "especially stayed in touch once Farrow began digging into Weinstein's horrific, decades-long history of violent sexual assault."
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Hilton lambasted Oppenheim for "acting as Harvey's lawyer" after he denied an interview secured by Farrow which was set to feature one of Weinstein's accusers. Oppenheim claimed at the time that encouraging women to break their nondisclosure agreements could get the network sued.
Eventually, Oppenheim told Farrow to suspend his investigation into Weinstein, saying: "No more reporting for a little bit."
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"That's the president of NBC News telling one of its own investigative reporters to 'stop reporting' on a story about a serial sexual predator..."
"That's the president of NBC News telling one of its own investigative reporters to 'stop reporting' on a story about a serial sexual predator," Hilton said, calling Oppenheim a "sick misogynistic apologist for rape."
Hilton said Lack and Oppenheim's protection of Weinstein "contributed to his belief that he was untouchable. The belief that enabled him to brazenly continue his career of sexual violence ... violence that was enabled by people like Lack and Oppenheim. Harvey Weinstein said as much."
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"He reached out to other NBC executives as well as Lack, and confidently told those around him that Ronan Farrow's investigation was dead," he added.
Highlighting a lesser-known detail of the scandal, Hilton said the Peacock Network covered for Weinstein after he threatened to reveal rape allegations against "Today" host Matt Lauer.
"Why did NBC News go to such lengths to kill the Weinstein story?" Hilton asked. "It wasn't just the personal connections with NBC executives. It turns out that NBC News was covering up not only Weinstein's crimes but those of its very own violent sexual monster right at the heart of its schedule ... Matt Lauer."
"While everyone now knows the sordid details of Lauer's depravity - the rape allegations, the sex toys gifted to underlings, the button under his desk to turn his office into a sex dungeon for women who were his prey ... NBC claimed they didn't know until late 2017," Hilton said, adding that "that too is a lie."
"That's how it all connects," he continued. "Ronan Farrow recounts how Harvey Weinstein threatened NBC with the publication of stories from Matt Lauer's victims if they published Farrow's work."
In a surprising moment for the outspoken conservative, Hilton credited MSNBC host and liberal commentator Rachel Maddow for inviting Farrow to speak out on her show.
"Every decent person at NBC...insist that those sick, sleazy, misogynists, Noah Oppenheim and Andy Lack...are sent packing."
"It is all so sick and so disgusting," Hilton said, but "there is one person at NBC News who emerges from this with any credit and that is Rachel Maddow who - to the fury of her bosses - invited Ronan Farrow on her show."
Hilton later called on "Every decent person at NBC, every decent shareholder at Comcast " to "rise up against the darkness at the heart of your organization" and demand the firings of Oppenheim and Lack.
"Insist that those sick, sleazy, misogynists, Noah Oppenheim and Andy Lack, Harvey Weinstein's apologists and enablers, are sent packing," Hilton concluded.
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"As long as they stay, NBC News will bear the stain of rape and sexual violence. As long as they stay, that is who they are."
Fox News' Brian Flood contributed to this report.