Tom Brokaw denies sexual misconduct
Longtime NBC News journalist Tom Brokaw, above, is denying allegations by a former network correspondent who said he sexually harassed her.
Linda Vester, 52, told Variety and The Washington Post that Brokaw made unwanted sexual advances toward her when they worked together at NBC in the 1990s.
Vester alleged that Brokaw forcefully tried to kiss her in 1994 when she was staying at the Essex House Hotel in New York, where he showed up uninvited. A similar incident occurred in May 1995, she alleged, when Brokaw appeared unannounced at her flat in London when she was assigned to the network’s bureau there.
Vester alleged that in both instances, Brokaw pressured her to have a sexual relationship with him. She said she feared that reporting the incidents would hurt her career.
Brokaw issued a statement saying the incidents Vester described did not happen.
“I met with Linda Vester on two occasions, both at her request, 23 years ago because she wanted advice with respect to her career at NBC,” Brokaw said in a statement. “The meetings were brief, cordial and appropriate, and despite Linda’s allegations, I made no romantic overtures towards her at that time or any other.”
Last November, the network fired its biggest star, longtime “Today” co-anchor Matt Lauer, for sexually inappropriate behavior after executives heard a formal complaint from a female network employee.
Brokaw joined NBC News in 1966 as an anchor at the network’s Los Angeles TV station, KNBC. He has been married since 1962.