New York attorney general said to be probing harassment allegations at NBC News
It is unclear if the investigation is ongoing, and the attorney general’s office declined to comment.
Zinone said she was asked about “the culture at NBC News and my experience as a young production assistant, including my interactions with Matt Lauer in the newsroom.”
The investigation reportedly involves allegations of sexual harassment, retaliation and gender discrimination.
Megyn Kelly, who hosted a morning show on NBC in 2017 and 2018, spoke with the attorney general’s office, according to a person with knowledge of the matter.
This person said another one of the women interviewed by the A.G.’s office is Linda Vester, who alleged in 2018 that former “NBC Nightly News” anchor Tom Brokaw “groped and assaulted” her in the early 1990s.
Employment lawyer Douglas Wigdor, who has represented plaintiffs in many harassment and retaliation cases, represents Vester and Kelly in connection with their testimony. The person with knowledge of the matter said both interviews took place in early January.
The A.G.’s office has not contacted NBC News management, according to a statement from NBCUniversal, which said, “We are not aware of any inquiry.”
Lack has said Farrow painted a “fundamentally untrue picture” of what happened with the Weinstein story. Further, Lack has defended NBC’s handling of complaints.
On Monday night, Farrow’s former producer at NBC, Rich McHugh, who left the network and strongly criticized its management, went on Fox News’ “Tucker Carlson Tonight” and shared his knowledge of the probe.
When Carlson said he had heard about a possible investigation, McHugh said “that is true. I’m aware of it. I’ve been looking into it for a story. It was the New York Attorney General’s office civil division, so we’re not sure if it could lead into anything criminal, but I do know that they’ve been looking into this and interviewing employees over a number of months.”