On Tuesday, CBS News announced the termination of journalist Charlie Rose over recent sexual harassment allegations, “effective immediately.”
“A short time ago we terminated Charlie Rose’s employment with CBS News, effective immediately,” wrote CBS News President David Rhodes. “This followed the revelation yesterday of extremely disturbing and intolerable behavior said to have revolved around his PBS program. Despite Charlie’s important journalistic contribution to our news division, there is absolutely nothing more important, in this or any organization, than ensuring a safe, professional workplace—a supportive environment where people feel they can do their best work. We need to be such a place.”
Rose, an Emmy and Peabody award winner, was accused by eight different women, ranging in age from 21-37, of sexual harassment, as revealed in a bombshell Washington Post report published on Monday.
As noted by Daily Wire’s Emily Zanotti, “Rose’s private demeanor is much different from his intellectual public persona,” according to the accounts in the WaPo report.
According to the Post’s interviews, the women claim Rose regularly touched them on their legs and thighs, and one woman says Rose actually groped her at a staff party. They also say that while traveling with Rose on business or while working at Rose’s home, he would leave mid-meeting to shower, and then return without clothes.
Via Twitter, Rose released an apology for his “inappropriate behavior” on Monday evening.
“I am 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,” wrote Rose. “I always felt that I pursued shared feelings though I now realize that I was mistaken.”
CBS suspended Rose on the same day Rose offered the apology.
The journalist’s “CBS This Morning” colleagues, co-anchors Gayle King and Norah O’Donnell, expressed their disappointment from the report on Tuesday morning.
“There is no excuse for this alleged behavior,” said O’Donnell. “It is systematic and pervasive, and I’ve been doing a lot of listening and I’m going to continue to do that. This I know is true: Women cannot achieve equality in the workplace or in society until there is a reckoning and a taking of responsibility.”
“We are all rocked by this,” King added. “And I — I want to echo what Norah said. I really applaud the women that speak up despite the friendship. He doesn’t get a pass because I can’t stop thinking about the anguish of these women, what happened to their dignity, what happened to their bodies, what happened maybe to even their careers.”
As noted by the Los Angeles Times, “CBS did not name a replacement for Rose on ‘CBS This Morning.’ A number of CBS News personalities are expected to fill his chair until a permanent co-anchor is named.”