Matt Lauer’s Accuser’s Attorney Says NBC Hasn’t Done Enough To Protect His Client
Ari Wilkenfeld's comments begin at the 1:30 mark in video above.
The attorney for the woman whose sexual misconduct allegations led to the termination of longtimeToday show anchor Matt Lauer tells NBC News that the network has not done enough to protect his client.
In an interview aired Friday on Today, attorney Ari Wilkenfeld said his client is “terrified” and lives “in constant fear that people are going to track her down and figure out who she is.”
“She doesn’t want to be known. She feels terrified for herself, and she feels badly for the many other women who are suspected of being her, who are also being hounded and harassed by people who are just trying to get the details of who the woman is.”
NBC News fired Lauer on November 28 after receiving a detailed complaint from Wilkenfeld’s client about inappropriate sexual behavior in the workplace.
Details about the accusation that led to Lauer’s firing have not been revealed, but NBC said the sexual misconduct began during the 2014 Sochi Olympics.
Wilkenfeld says the network hasn’t done enough to protect his client’s identity.
“NBC has a duty to maintain confidentially. That means to maintain secrecy over her name and to hold to themselves the details of her story. And they have not done a good job of doing that,” he said. “They know exactly what they’ve done, and they need to stop.”
“There’s a hunt underway to figure out who she is,” he added. “And I think that’s going to have a chilling effect on other women who might want to come forward and tell their stories.”
Wilkenfeld called his client “incredibly brave,” saying her actions have helped protect other women who work at NBC.
An NBC News spokesperson said “the network has protected the employee’s anonymity all along and will continue to do so.”
You can watch the interview in the video above.
[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u90S_xePmQw&w=605&h=340]
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