Men Are Losing Their Jobs Over Sexual Harassment. These Women Are Replacing Them
Dozens of prominent men — including Matt Lauer, Harold Ford Jr. and Sen. Al Franken— have lost or left their jobs amid allegations of sexual misconduct over the past several months. They are leaving behind positions of great influence — a morning show anchor reportedly making $25 million a year, a managing director at a major bank and a Senate seat during a pivotal moment in politics. But who’s going to fill these roles?
Pundits and many among the wider public are calling for women to get the jobs. “We shouldn’t just be taking the bad ones down,” lawyer and writer Jill Filipovic wrote in an essay for TIME. “We need to start demanding that their replacements are female.”
Conscientiously promoting women into such prominent jobs may help right the gender imbalance that continues to plague workplaces, from Hollywood to Washington.
As of Dec. 8, TIME counted 80 high-profile American men who have been publicly accused of some type of sexual misconduct since the Harvey Weinstein accusationsbroke. Some of their jobs are being filled by women — with caveats. Robin Wright will become House of Cards‘ top star, though only for the show’s shortened final season. Christiane Amanpour will replace Charlie Rose on PBS, but only on an interim basis.
More women may join their company soon. The Minneapolis Star Tribune reported on Dec. 8 that Minnesota Lieutenant Governor Tina Smith is the likeliest candidate to replace Franken in the Senate, while Maria Contreras-Sweet, who ran the Small Business Administration under President Barack Obama, has expressed interest in buying the Weinstein Company. The New York Post offered up a list of female candidates for Lauer’s gig.
As TIME has been tracking the men who have been accused, we will also examine the resulting power and culture shifts in quantifiable ways. Below are women who have replaced some of the men accused of harassment or misconduct. We will continue to update this list.
Edith Chapin
Replaced: David Sweeney
On Nov. 28, NPR reported that its chief news editor, David Sweeney, left the company after at least three current and former NPR journalists claimed he sexually harassed them. Sweeney, who oversaw NPR’s news desks, told TIME in November that he had no comment on the allegations.
NPR reported that Chris Turpin, the acting senior vice president of news, said in an email to staff that Chapin would replace Sweeney by resuming her role as executive editor and taking over Sweeney’s duties.
Chapin became the organization’s executive editor in 2015, giving her the reins of all of NPR’s news desks. In August 2017, NPR’s senior vice president of news and editorial director Michael Oreskes announced that Chapin would focus full-time on building a collaborative journalism network with NPR’s member stations. When Chapin’s new role was announced, Oreskes said that Sweeney would take over from Chapin in overseeing all of NPR’s news desks and editors.
After Sweeney’s departure, Chapin will regain her old responsibilities, but she’ll “continue to devote time to the journalism network,” a NPR spokesperson told TIME in an email.