Three more women who worked with the ousted broadcaster have come forward to accuse Charlie Rose of sexual harassment, bringing the number of on-the-record accusers to 11. That’s according to Variety, which reports that the new accusations are from employees of CBS News—as opposed to the initial eight who went on the record in the Washington Post on Monday, who worked on Rose’s eponymous show. The three women making the complaints were not identified, but CBS News’ own reporting says that, while one woman was “not ready” to share details, the other two described being groped by Rose at work-related events, with one saying he “grabbed her inappropriately and whispered a sexual innuendo in her ear.”
The allegations were first reported on the CBS Evening News, with a followup on CBS This Morning, which Rose used to cohost before before he was officially fired yesterday. “We learned about these cases not from the HR department, but from our own investigation into his behavior,” correspondent Bianna Golodryga said on the morning show, adding, “As tough as this is, it makes it even more important that we continue to follow this story and tell these women’s horrific details and their own stories.”
That investigation follows through on a promise CBS This Morning cohost Norah O’Donnell made yesterday as part of an unequivocal condemnation of Rose’s behavior, in which she said: “This will be investigated. This has to end. This behavior is wrong, period.” Kudos to the CBS This Morning team for following through. CBS This Morning cohost and Rose’s longtime colleague Gayle King also addressed the allegations against Rose on The Late Show With Stephen Colbert last night, saying it was “painful” to report on a friend and colleague but, “we still have to report the news.”