Linda Fairstein

Linda Fairstein, a former Manhattan sex crimes prosecutor, appears in the book at a contested junction between legal authority and Harvey Weinstein’s efforts to answer an allegation against him. She privately assisted Weinstein’s side in the Ambra Battilana Gutierrez case, but did not disclose that connection when she told Megan Twohey the allegation was unfounded. Later, she joined Weinstein’s representatives in a meeting at The New York Times, where the group presented material intended to cast doubt on accusers. The reporting describes her role without treating the records assembled against Gutierrez as proof that her allegation was false.

Role in the Gutierrez Case

Fairstein was not merely a public commentator on Gutierrez’s allegation. She was in contact with Weinstein’s office and helped connect his legal team with the lead prosecutor. That involvement mattered because, during the summer of 2017, she had told Twohey that Gutierrez’s allegation was unfounded without disclosing her ties to the case.

When Twohey later challenged that omission, Fairstein said it was the reporter’s fault for not asking about her connections and maintained that there was nothing unusual about her actions. The contrast between her earlier assessment and her private involvement leaves readers to weigh her assurances against a relationship that had not been made clear at the time.

The New York Times Meeting

As The New York Times investigation advanced, Weinstein arrived at the newspaper’s lobby with lawyers and other representatives, including Fairstein. Twohey led the group to a small glass-walled meeting room in a busy corridor and limited the meeting to fifteen minutes. The setting made the encounter visible to newsroom colleagues rather than private or discreet.

Fairstein and Elkan Abramowitz presented Gutierrez as an opportunist by drawing attention to aspects of her past. The group also brought forward other material intended to discredit women who had spoken about Weinstein: Lisa Bloom produced photographs of Rose McGowan and Ashley Judd smiling beside him, while Weinstein attacked the women’s mental stability. These were distinct parts of the presentation; the book specifically associates Fairstein and Abramowitz with the portrayal of Gutierrez.

Effect on the Investigation

The reporters had already checked Gutierrez’s background with help from a colleague in Italy. Jodi Kantor and Twohey had also examined Judd’s history, including her memoir, to anticipate material that might be used against her or the newspaper. In that context, the meeting supplied no information that overturned their reporting. Instead, it showed the reporters what tactics Weinstein and his allies were prepared to deploy.

The book also preserves an important limit: court records concerning Gutierrez’s earlier testimony and an older allegation against another man did not prove that she had lied about Weinstein—or even that she had lied about the earlier man. New York prosecutors later acknowledged concern that the history highlighted by Weinstein might affect how credible Gutierrez appeared at trial. Fairstein’s presence in the reporting thus belongs to a larger account of how legal connections and selective background material could shape the response to an allegation, without settling its truth.