The backlash against Charlie Rose continues to pile up today, as The Walter Cronkite School Of Journalism issued a press release, stating that it was stripping the veteran interviewer of an award it gave him for excellence in journalism in 2015. The news comes after Rose was accused earlier this weekof sexual harassment by multiple women he’d worked with over the years, and after his network homes at PBS and CBS both cut ties.
The statement accompanying the decision contained some fairly damning language, including accusations that Rose’s alleged behavior included “transgressions…so egregious that they demand nothing less than a reversal of history” in stripping him of the honor. The Washington Post initially broke the story of Rose’s accusers, with eight women coming forward stating that he had made unwanted sexual advances toward them over the years. More women have come forward since.
Rose apologized for his behavior earlier this week, stating, “It is essential that these women know I hear them and that I deeply apologize for my inappropriate behavior,” although he also claimed that he was unaware that his sexual interest in them was unwanted. The School’s denunciation of him ended on the following note: “In rescinding this award, we hope to send an unequivocal message that what Mr. Rose did is unacceptable, and that such behavior—far too common in not just media companies but many organizations—must stop.”