A prominent alleged victim of Mark Halperin, the disgraced political journalist and pundit accused of sexual assault and harassment by almost a dozen women, has called for the termination of the anti-Trump book deal he scored as part of his attempt at redemption.
“Halperin has been actively trying to get back his power and fame and huge money since his victims went public,” journalist and author Emily Miller told the Washington Examiner on Monday. The book deal should be abandoned because of “the pain it’s causing victims,” she added.”They should [cancel it] if they had any decency.”
Less than two years after he withdrew from public life, Regan Arts, run by celebrity publisher Judith Regan, announced it would publish a book authored by Halperin. The backlash was swift.
Halperin, 54, who appeared regularly on MSNBC’s Morning Joe show as a political analyst, was fired by NBC after almost a dozen women made sexual harassment or assault claims against him. Miller, 48, said Halperin “attacked” her when both worked at ABC News and she was his subordinate.
“I did not report Halperin to ABC because I thought I was the only one, and I blamed myself, and I was embarrassed and I was scared of him,” she said in October 2017. He later issued a statement saying: “I am profoundly sorry for the pain and anguish I have caused by my past actions. I apologize sincerely to the women I mistreated.”
Halperin’s book is titled How to Beat Trump: America’s Top Political Strategists on What It Will Take, which includes takes from prominent Democratic political strategists. Criticism have arisen as to whether any of these political consultants should have helped Halperin write his book at all, and Halperin’s accusers do not view his apology as sincere.
“He never apologized to his victims because he’s only sorry he got caught. Men like him, who assault younger women at work for decades, never change. Any of the people who helped him get this book deal are complicit,” said Miller.
Halperin has boasted that 75 Democrats had cooperated with him on the book. Former Obama chief strategist David Axelrod expressed regret for being one of them.
According to CNN, Halperin was accused of “propositioning employees for sex to kissing and grabbing one’s breasts against her will.” Three women described Halperin as “pressing an erection against their bodies while he was clothed.” Another said he masturbated in front of her in his office. A fourth said he violently threw her against a restaurant window before attempting to kiss her and that when she refused he telephoned her and told her she would never work in politics or media.
Press Forward, a nonprofit organization that advocates for “safe, civil and diverse workplaces for women and men to do their best work in journalism” released a statement denouncing the book.
“Press Forward is disappointed in Regan Arts’ decision to publish and promote a book by Mark Halperin, who has been credibly accused by multiple women of sexual misconduct, harassment and assault. We hope those involved will reconsider their support in enabling people who have shown no accountability or atonement for their actions.”
But others have argued that Halperin deserves a second chance.
New York Democratic Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, one of the first lawmakers on Capitol Hill to spearhead the #MeToo movement and call for the resignation of then-Minnesota Democratic Sen. Al Franken, said during a Washington Post event Monday that both Halperin and Franken deserve a “path to redemption.”
Halperin’s fall from grace was swift. One of the most prominent journalists in America, he was the co-creator and co-star of the Showtime documentary series The Circus and co-authored the book Game Change about the 2008 presidential election, and its sequel, Double Down, about the 2012 race. Game Change was adapted into an HBO movie starring Julianne Moore and Ed Harris.
Eric Dezenhall, a crisis management consultant, and founder of Washington, D.C.-based public relations firm Dezenhall Resources, said that Halperin’s critics will never accept his apology no matter what he says but that he cannot ignore the issue either.
Dezenhall explained, “ [The apology] will always be declared too little too late. No one will ever be happy with it and that is not your goal. If you can get a book deal that’s a good thing. If you could get a TV network to consider putting you back on the air that’s your goal.”
He added, “I mean look at Brian Williams [who fabricated an account of coming under fire in Iraq], even though it’s a different situation. He did return to the air, but your test should not be will your critics be happy with you, because they will never be happy with you.”
[Opinion: Democrats scramble to disown their involvement in an accused predator’s new book]
