Veteran journalist Charlie Rose has been accused of sexual harassment by eight different women, according to a thorough report from the Washington Post.
One of the women, Reah Bravo, told the Post that when she worked for Rose he once positioned himself in front of a mirror without any clothes on so she could see him. Bravo also recounted instances where Rose groped her in the back off a car and got on top of her while they were on a private airplane.
“I felt an immense sense of shame that I had greenlighted his actions because I didn’t fight back,” said Bravo.
Another woman, Kyle Godfrey-Ryan, claimed that Rose frequently berated her on the job, only to apologize for his actions while touching her in an inappropriate manner, such as rubbing her thigh or touching the side of one of her breasts. Rose would also ask her for details on her sex life and, like with Bravo, walk around naked in front of her. Godfrey-Ryan said that Rose fired her when he got word of how she complained about his behavior.
“Everything I experienced with journalism there made me not want to stay,” said Godfrey-Ryan.
A third woman, Megan Creydt, claimed that Rose touched her on the thigh while she was in the passenger seat of a car.
Five other women who didn’t want to identify themselves out of fear of Rose’s power in the industry gave similar stories, including how he frequently gave unwanted shoulder rubs, touched them on the legs, and in one case groped the buttocks of a female. One of these women claimed that when she visited Rose’s house for a job interview, the journalist wore nothing but an open robe and twice tried to slide his hand into her pants. Another woman claimed he groped her breasts and stomach while they were driving.
Yvette Vega, Rose’s executive producer, told the Post in a statement that she “should have stood up for” the women who Rose allegedly harassed.
“I failed,” said Vega. “It is crushing. I deeply regret not helping them.”
Rose issued a statement to the Post that he is “greatly embarrassed.”
“I have behaved insensitively at times, and I accept responsibility for that, though I do not believe that all of these allegations are accurate,” said Rose. “I always felt that I was pursuing shared feelings, even though I now realize I was mistaken.”
In light of the allegations, PBS and Bloomberg are suspending distribution of Rose’s nationally syndicated interview show. CBS is also suspending Rose from his position as co-anchor of CBS This Morning.
