Sources: CBS board knew of Moonves claims months ago
CBS board members learned several months ago that the Los Angeles Police Department had investigated an alleged sexual assault by CBS chairman and chief executive officer Leslie Moonves, according to two people familiar with the matter who were not authorized to speak publicly.
Although no charges were filed, Moonves disclosed the existence of a police investigation to a committee of the board, which then hired an outside law firm to investigate the matter, the knowledgeable people said.
The outside firm reviewed information about the allegations and police inquiry and concluded that “no further investigation was warranted,” according to one of the sources.
Questions surrounding what CBS board members knew about allegations of misconduct by the longtime CEO — when they learned of the claims, and the action they took — could further fuel the controversy over their handling of the matter.
Board members have faced criticism from corpo- rate governance experts and others for not taking more aggressive action — such as suspending Moonves — in the wake of last week’s New Yorker magazine article, which contained allegations of six women who said that Moonves sexually harassed them. Board members on Monday said they would select an outside counsel to “conduct an independent investigation.”
The board has hired two high-powered attorneys — Mary Jo White, a former Securities and Exchange Commission chairwoman, and Nancy Kestenbaum — to oversee the investigation into the allegations involving Moonves as well as executives within CBS News.
“The board has to separate the noise from the reality,” said Charles Elson, director of the John L. Weinberg Center for Corporate Governance at the University of Delaware. “Allegations alone are not a reason to take action: There has to be something serious — and credible — for them to act.”
Moonves on Thursday is expected to address the allegations during a conference call with analysts to report the broadcasting company’s second-quarter earnings.
“The Board noted that it takes these allegations seriously and is committed to acting in the best interest of the Company and all of its shareholders,” CBS said in a statement Wednesday.
The police investigation began in November after an 81-year-old woman told detectives that Moonves sexually assaulted her three decades ago when they both worked at then-television powerhouse Lorimar Productions, the studio behind such shows as “Dallas” and “Knott’s Landing.” The woman claimed the TV executive, during a 1986 meeting in his office, demanded oral copulation. She told police about another incident, in 1988, when he allegedly exposed himself and assaulted her, sources said.
Los Angeles County prosecutors said they declined to file charges in the case, saying the alleged incidents occurred more than 30 years ago and were thus beyond the statute of limitations.
The New Yorker article detailed allegations of several women who said Moonves’ “forcibly kissed” them, and that they believed their careers had suffered after they spurned his advances.