Catch and Kill

Read this in conjunction with [b:She Said: Breaking the Sexual Harassment Story That Helped Ignite a Movement 44767249 She Said Breaking the Sexual Harassment Story That Helped Ignite a Movement Jodi Kantor https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1573830483l/44767249.SY75.jpg 69397793], and you'll really see how much of a difference a supportive editorial structure makes when reporting a major story (I say like I have any special insight into journalism). The fact that Noah Oppenheim and Andy Lack still have their jobs after this book's publication is just staggering and an incredibly clear illustration of why the Weinstein story would never have seen the light of day at NBC. This book is almost as much about the fight to fully report the Weinstein story and the efforts to keep it hidden as it is about the story itself - it reminded me in that way of [b:Bad Blood: Secrets and Lies in a Silicon Valley Startup 37976541 Bad Blood Secrets and Lies in a Silicon Valley Startup John Carreyrou https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1556268702l/37976541.SX50.jpg 59699437]. I also very much enjoyed the spy-novel aspects, the shade regarding the movie Jackie, and the Jon Lovett cameos (“I'm interesting! I've been to an escape room!”). Highly recommended.

I already knew a fair bit about Weinstein's story before reading this, but the thing that is emphasized here over and over again is just how many people were willing to actively defend and support the behaviour of this terrible human being (and others like him). Some of these people felt they had no other choice due to the power dynamics at play (including many of the victims), but there were also many others also in positions of power who acted purely to maintain the status quo. Very disheartening.

The author is the main character of the story here, it's told from his perspective and shows the journalistic process behind exposing a story like this, which is very fascinating to me. It isn't as simple as just printing what people tell you. I need to find more books about this type of work, but it reminds me of movies like Spotlight or All The President's Men.

I listened to this via audiobook from the library's Libby app through a neat program that I didn't know existed called “Skip The Line”. This is a popular book with a long waitlist, but it has at least one copy that when available is presented to people in the hold queue to take out immediately as long as they act quickly, and the loan is for a shorter period with no option to renew.

The audiobook itself was narrated by the author himself and for the most part well done and engaging... however he does voices/accents any time someone else is speaking and it is incredibly weird and cringey, I don't understand why he felt the need to do that.

One sentence synopsis... A routine network tv piece leads to a web of Hollywood conspiracies, press intimidation, and an elite league of shadowy spies.

Read it if you like... the obvious comparison is other MeToo related content like Jodi Kantor's ‘She Said' but this books read more like a Bourne novel to me - fast paced, action packed. Similar to ‘I'll Be Gone In The Dark' in how the author becomes part of the story.

Further reading... picking up Farrow's previous book ‘War on Peace' about American diplomacy.

I've known the name of Ronan Farrow but not much about his credentials except the Pulitzer Prize he won for the Weinstein story. I got to know a bit more about him when I read the recent book She Said by Megan Twohey and Jodi Kanter, who were his fellow recipients of the prize for their part in the exposé of the sexual harassment allegations. So, when I got to know about this book and some related controversy surrounding it, and also watched Chris Hayes's remarks at the time of the release, I knew I had to pick it up. And wow have I been blown away.

“Enjoy” is such an unsuitable word to associate with this book because it talks about some very deeply disturbing topics, but the way Farrow writes it makes it feel like a thriller novel with multiple POVs, with some dry and sarcastic humor thrown in, which makes it a riveting experience - I was so drawn by the story in these pages that I stayed up very late in the night to finish it; I knew I wasn't gonna be able to sleep without knowing how it ended.

I assumed initially that this book might feel repetitive because the contents of She Said are still very much ingrained in my mind, and while some women who came forward with their stories were the same in both the books, Farrow managed to talk to so many other women and discover a pattern of abuse, intimidation and coverup that was revolting. Every experience that these women share and how it has adversely affected their life over the years is very very difficult to read, and Farrow's anguish at being the one who was listening to them first hand and having the responsibility of bringing their abusers to light, is very palpable in his writing.

But what makes this book even more interesting but also scary to read is the kind of pushback he got in his efforts to bring his reporting to light. This is a journalist who believes in the values of the news organization he works for, loves his job, and just wants to do extensive reporting and be able to provide a voice to the number of women who had been so brutally silenced. But the way he is directly and indirectly blocked by his own bosses at NBC from proceeding disturbs him deeply and it shows in his many conversations with them, trying to justify how important his reporting was but being told it wasn't enough - not that it's surprising because women's voices are never believable enough. And if silencing by his bosses is just one part of the story, the underhanded illegal surveillance tactics used by Weinstein to scare him into not pursuing his story reads like a spy thriller, and if I didn't know that he is currently alive and well, I would have been much more scared for Farrow's life while reading the book. As he becomes increasingly consumed by his investigation while also being paranoid about being surveilled, it affects his own long distance relationship with his partner. Their arguments but also Jonathan's quiet support bring a little humor and personal touch to this book and I really appreciated that. And it was actually very sweet and incredibly nerdy the way Farrow proposed to Jon (I really don't wanna spoil it) and it was nice to see that they survived the intensity of those years.

The threads of cover up go from news organizations to DA's offices to state and national politicians to a veritable who's who of lawyers to international private intelligence companies - and while this may have been surprising to me a few years ago, it just seems par for the course of powerful people protecting more powerful people. While many of us have been disillusioned by the powerful among the politicians or Hollywood getting away with their harassment using their hordes of lawyers, it's definitely more shocking to read about legitimate famous news organizations like NBC which pride themselves on being the voice of truth for the people, doing the same when it comes to protecting the higher ups in their executive, creating a hostile atmosphere for the women who work there and ultimately silencing them with money and NDAs. While there are many journalists with integrity working at these places like Farrow and McHugh etc, news reporting is also ultimately a business and the higher ups seem to be more concerned about their bottom line and protecting their powerful friends rather than worrying about journalistic ethics. Especially the reporting about the rape and sexual harassment allegations against Matt Lauer are very hard to read, and I can't even fathom what these women go through just to be able to work at a place they admire. Thank god for the people at The New Yorker who had enough principles to let Farrow complete his investigation and report it thoroughly.

In conclusion, I just want to say that you should read this book. If you are someone who is disappointed everyday by unreliable news reporting and the spin machine employed by powerful individuals, this book will feel like a ray of light and give you some sense of hope that there are many journalists of integrity who are trying very hard to bring the truth out into the open while fighting many battles in the background to make it happen, and Farrow rightly calls this a love letter to journalists. This can also feel hopeless and scary at times because of the massive cover up machine across numerous organizations that make sure powerful men are never held accountable, but it's still an important book. And ultimately, it's a testament to the strength of many many women who decide to come forward with their stories, reliving their trauma in the process and hounded by their abuser's PR machine and letting their lives be upended again, but finally coming to the conclusion that enough is enough and raise their voice so that future generations of women might have it a little easier.

“And there it was, at the end of his arguments: an unwillingness not just to take responsibility but to admit that responsibility might, in some place, in someone's hands, exist. It was a consensus about the organization's comfort level moving forward that stopped the reporting. It was a consensus about the organization's comfort level moving forward that bowed to lawyers and threats; that hemmed and hawed and parsed and shrugged; that sat on multiple credible allegations of sexual misconduct and disregarded a recorded admission of guilt. That anodyne phrase, that language of indifference without ownership, upheld so much silence in so many places. It was a consensus about the organization's comfort level moving forward that protected Harvey Weinstein and men like him; that yawned and gaped and enveloped law firms and PR shops and executive suites and industries; that swallowed women whole.”

Starts a bit slowly, but Farrow's passion for a good story, even if it's his, kicks in a third of the way through. The Lauer portion of the story is a bit of an afterthought, but Weinstein/NBC portion of the book is riveting reading. Farrow's actions helped blow open the #MeToo movement, and Farrow's excellent prose takes the reader along for the crazy, sad ride. He won the Pulitzer for this, and he deserved it.

Ronan Farrow has lived an absolutely surreal life. This memoir is so beautifully written, and details an absolutely astonishing account of his work. Without spoiling what lies within, it is a grim reminder that the wealthy aristocracy that powers news, entertainment, and politics get away with so much more than any of the rest of us normal folk ever could. This book touches on an amazing breadth of shocking, miserable, and depressing news stories from the past 20 years, and revolves around Harvey Weinstein's bullshit behavior and the seedy underbelly of Hollywood and news media which tried to keep it a secret.

4.5 stars. I read articles as all this crap was happening so I knew about the NBC coverup, and the shocking necessity these interviews had to be published elsewhere. That's what I really wanted to hear more about. If you want to know the mechanics of how rich idiots influence “journalism”, you'll want to read this. It's one reason why I never have, and never will watch any of the mainstream outlets. Thank goodness there are people who have principles, like McHugh, Ronan finding a way to get these stories out no matter what, and all the people who leaked information about what their employers were actually doing. There's also much more than I expected about the private investigator angle and how much of that was happening in the background.

This is a riveting story of the reporting Ronan Farrow did for the story on Harvey Weinstein's predatory assaults on women that was ultimately published in the New Yorker. Of course, it includes the story of finding witnesses and sources for his information and persuading them to talk to him candidly, when many of them had signed non-disclosure agreements. It also covers the story of how NBC, his news agency and employer, tried to get him to stop covering the story, and how he was followed and watched by private investigators with ties to Mossad.

This book is very readable. Farrow has an engaging voice and an excellent sense of pace. Since he was an active part of the story he's telling, he includes his own thoughts and actions from the time in his narrative, so it's a bit like a memoir. It's also a bit like a hard boiled detective novel or a crime thriller, because the crimes are so egregious, the lengths Weinstein was willing to go to cover them up were extreme, and his influence seemed to reach everywhere. The whole story is horrifyingly over the top.

LMAO I'm just reading reviews from friends about how Ronan tries and fails to do accents in the audiobook?? Aww bud. I read the print edition and was really impressed with it. Very compelling, impressive research obviously...disgusting but slightly optimistic?

Probably a 4-star read but I'm giving it a bonus star because fuck Harvey Weinstein basically

The shocking and suspenseful behind-the-scenes on the investigative journalism that helped bring Harvey Weinstein down. Seen through the bigger lens of catch&kill campaigns where the wealthy and powerful have the means and the support network to squash and scare- and pay-off any sexual assault accusers. The book reads like a thriller (this will become a movie eventually, right?) and Farrow's writing is engaging, sometimes even candidly personal.

Who knew spy pens are still a thing in our modern day spy era!!!

Doing the audiobook version was a good choice. Farrow doing a whole lot of accents (to more or less success) was entertaining, but they also included the actual audio of the Weinstein NYPD tape. Which felt like a very novel audiobook thing to do.