Former Obama Adviser Anita Dunn Helped Harvey Weinstein Strategize Before New York Times Story
On Thursday, the New York Times published a major investigation about the Hollywood mogul, who had assembled a team of top legal and PR professionals.
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A former top adviser to Barack Obama was among the list of public relations professionals and lawyers consulting Harvey Weinstein over a major New York Times story, according to two people familiar with the matter.
Anita Dunn, a top Obama campaign staffer and former White House communications director, helped offer damage control advice for the Hollywood mogul.
On Thursday afternoon, the New York Times published a major investigation into Weinsteinthat features on-the-record claims of sexual harassment, including from actor Ashley Judd.
The Hollywood Reporter and Variety reported Wednesday that the Times was working on the story on Weinstein’s personal “behavior." The two Hollywood trade outlets also reported that NBC News' Ronan Farrow is working on a piece about Weinstein for the New Yorker.
Jason Reed / Reuters
Barack Obama with political strategist Anita Dunn and adviser David Plouffe.
Dunn was not paid by Weinstein for her help, according to one of the people familiar with the matter. But she did offer her PR advice, including in regards to a Sept. 23 Times story written by Megan Twohey. The story, about a controversy over Weinstein’s work with AIDS charity amfAR, was thought to be a precursor to the big investigation posted on Thursday.
Sources said that Lanny Davis, former special counsel to Bill Clinton, has been central to the PR effort for Weinstein, who is a major Democratic donor. Dunn, for her part, is the managing director of SKDKnickerbocker, a Washington public affairs firm with deep ties to Democratic politics. She was communications director for Obama’s 2008 campaign and served briefly in his administration.
Later on Thursday, SKDK put out a statement on the matter: "Today you may have seen a news report indicating that our colleague Anita Dunn recently advised Harvey Weinstein. Anita was asked to speak with him by a friend. Harvey Weinstein and Miramax are not now and have never been clients of our firm or of Anita’s. If you know Anita, you can only imagine what she said to him. Our commitment to defending women’s rights remains as strong as ever."
Weinstein’s legal team is also a murderer’s row of high-profile names, according to Variety and THR: David Boies, Lisa Bloom (who helped bring down Bill O’Reilly), and Charles Harder (who helped Hulk Hogan fell Gawker).
Weinstein responded to the Times story with a statement: “I appreciate the way I’ve behaved with colleagues in the past has caused a lot of pain, and I sincerely apologize for it. Though I’m trying to do better, I know I have a long way to go.”
He had responded in a statement on Wednesday to the reports foreshadowing the New York Times story: “The story sounds so good I want to buy the movie rights.”
Prior to publication of the Times story on Thursday, Davis and Bloom (who in April tweetedthat her book was being made into a Weinstein-produced miniseries) did not return requests for comment. Spokespeople for the New York Times and The New Yorker both declined to comment.
One of Hollywood’s most famous producers known for films like The Artist and Silver Linings Playbook, Weinstein — who cofounded Miramax — has been a controversial presence for years. He has been known to be combative with both employees and the press.
Ruby Cramer contributed additional reporting to this story.
The mogul, who has been accused of sexual harassment, has given generously to Hillary Clinton over the years.
Harvey Weinstein, over the last few decades, has exerted his significant influence over the world of Hollywood filmmaking and entertainment. But, as a reliable and consistent donor for Democratic politicians, his largesse and deep connections have also translated to the world of electoral politics.
The mogul was the subject of a New York Times exposé published on Thursday alleging that he "has reached at least eight settlements with women" over sexual harassment claims.
Weinstein told the paper that he was taking a leave of absence from his company in order to focus, in part, on his political goals. "I am going to need a place to channel that anger so I've decided that I'm going to give the NRA my full attention," Weinstein wrote in a statement to the paper.
He added: "I hope [NRA executive] Wayne LaPierre will enjoy his retirement party. I'm going to do it at the same place I had my Bar Mitzvah. I'm making a movie about our President, perhaps we can make it a joint retirement party."
Weinstein was a strong supporter of Hillary Clinton's recent presidential run and donated to her political campaigns about 10 times between 1999 and 2016, according to a review of campaign finance records.
Weinstein's donations to Clinton over the years total more than $20,000 and span from her successful campaign for U.S. Senate in New York in 2000 to her unsuccessful presidential campaigns of 2007 and 2016. He also donated to her husband's presidential campaigns in the 1990's.
More broadly, Weinstein has donated generously to Democratic political candidates, national party campaign committees and state Democratic Party operations over the last few decades. Last year, he also gave $10,000 to a political action committee associated with the advocacy group Human Rights Campaign.
On Thursday, after the Times report came out, a spokesperson for Democratic Sen. Martin Heinrich's re-election campaign told The Hollywood Reporter that a $5,400 donation from Weinstein in April has been given to a New Mexico non-profit organization that offers a 24-hour hotline for survivors of domestic and sexual violence. The decision to do so was made "as soon as Senator Heinrich learned of these allegations," the campaign representative said. (Sen. Patrick Leahy has also given away a campaign donation from Weinstein.)
Weinstein threw a fundraiser for Clinton in June 2016 at his home in Manhattan, co-hosted by several A-list actors. He also reportedly attended several other fundraisers for Clinton in New York City during the campaign. Hollywood, generally, was firmly behind Clinton's campaign, so Weinstein was not alone in his support for the former secretary of state.
He also hosted fundraisers benefiting Barack Obama's reelection campaign in 2012 and donated several times to his campaign in 2011 and 2012. Weinstein was considered a "bundler" for Obama's campaign, as he raised $679,275 for it.
Obama's daughter, Malia Obama, also recently interned for Harvey Weinstein's company in New York during a break before college.
Weinstein, in an interview on CBS in April 2016, expressed a preference for Clinton over her then-rival in the Democratic primary, Sen. Bernie Sanders. "I'd rather go with Hillary's, who's a strong, proven leader," he said at the time. According to an email leaked and published last fall, the Clinton campaign helped prepare Weinstein for the interview.
So, Ashley Judd is a right wing activist?
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