Here’s why the Garrison Keillor allegations stand out
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By Abby Ohlheiser December 1, 2017
Garrison Keillor appears during a live broadcast for “A Prairie Home Companion” at the State Theatre in Minneapolis in May 2016. Keillor said this past Wednesday that he has been fired by Minnesota Public Radio over allegations of improper behavior. (Leila Navidi/Star Tribune via AP)
The public first learned that Garrison Keillor had been accused of improper behavior from Garrison Keillor. The humorist emailed an Associated Press reporter on Wednesday to break the news — and simultaneously issue a statement in his own defense — just hours before Minnesota Public Radio announced they were going to fire him.
Keillor wrote that he was fired over “a story that I think is more interesting and more complicated than the version MPR heard.”
In the weeks since the New York Times and the New Yorker first reported several accusations of sexual harassment and assault against Harvey Weinstein, a wave of victims have told stories about powerful men who allegedly used their positions of power to get away with sexual misconduct. Hours before Keillor was fired, NBC announced that it was parting ways with “Today” show host Matt Lauer over alleged inappropriate sexual behavior.
[VIDEO] 7:01 The Accused: A running list of sexual misconduct allegations After the Harvey Weinstein scandal broke, more women and men have come forward against a growing list of well-known male figures. (Erin Patrick O'Connor, Nicki DeMarco/The Washington Post)
But Keillor’s response stands out as unusual for a person accused of improper conduct. In the 24 hours after his firing, he has spoken again and again about the allegations against him. So as a result, since MPR hasn’t shared specifics and the alleged victim hasn’t spoken to the press, the only one publicly telling the story of what Keillor did is Keillor himself. And many of Keillor’s biggest fans have chosen to believe the master storyteller.
Last year, Keillor retired from the show that made him — and to a great degree, MPR — famous. “A Prairie Home Companion” is still on air with a new host. But a month after learning of the allegations against Keillor, the public radio network has responded by appearing to re-create themselves as if Keillor never existed. On Wednesday, MPR said “A Prairie Home Companion” will get a new name. MPR will stop broadcasting old episodes of the show that Keillor hosted, and the station ended an agreement to broadcast and distribute Keillor’s “The Writer’s Almanac.”
“I put my hand on a woman’s bare back,” he wrote. “I meant to pat her back after she told me about her unhappiness and her shirt was open and my hand went up it about six inches. She recoiled. I apologized. I sent her an email of apology later and she replied that she had forgiven me and not to think about it. We were friends. We continued to be friendly right up until her lawyer called.”
On Thursday, MPR told the Associated Press .. http://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/ct-garrison-keillor-firing-backlash-20171130-story.html .. that the public radio organization had received “a formal complaint from an individual that includes multiple allegations related to Garrison’s behavior.” In a follow-up interview with the AP, Keillor clarified that he hasn’t seen the allegations MPR is investigating and that the story he shared publicly was the “only incident he could remember.” (The Post has emailed Keillor and has not heard back.)
“I don’t think that people should talk out of bewilderment,” he said. “My situation is that I’ve worked extremely hard on a show that I love for almost 50 years, and somebody else can torch it in one morning, and so it’s all gone. And it’s a difficult thing to discuss.”
The Berkshire Eagle also reported that two people stopped by the table to tell Keillor they supported him:
“Listen, I think you’re amazing,” one said. “I just want to say: Don’t stop telling your stories,” said another.
More fans weighed in on Thursday afternoon, when MPR news host Tom Weber opened up the station’s phone lines and email inboxes to its listeners. The majority of callers and emailers were defensive of Keillor and critical of MPR’s decision to address the accusation by cutting ties with the humorist.
A man named Michael wrote in that “Keillor was convicted without a trial,” and that he would never give a dime again to the station. Charlene in Golden Valley was ending her membership with the station for “turning [Keillor] into a criminal.” Nan told the station it should be ashamed of itself. Another emailer used language that was unsuited to a radio broadcast.
Not everyone was swayed. Julie in Minneapolis said she was a longtime fan of Keillor but had long been troubled by what she described as “sexist” comments in his past work. Tom called in to chide other listeners for failing to discuss the harm caused to Keillor’s alleged victim. Lauren in St. Paul hoped that Keillor’s fans would learn from this that “your heroes might not be as great as they seem,” and that “it’s very obvious that there are men in power who are not very conscious of how they are towards women.”
“We understand that some listeners are upset and know that the limited information we’ve made available at this time may not seem to justify such a consequential decision,” MPR spokeswoman Angie Andresen said in a statement to the Associated Press .. http://www.startribune.com/garrison-keillor-off-the-air-after-misconduct-allegations/460936653/ .. on Thursday. “We want to assure that this decision honors the highest standards they’ve come to expect from us.”
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