{"id":1469325,"date":"2022-05-09T18:29:36","date_gmt":"2022-05-09T22:29:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1469325"},"modified":"2022-05-09T18:29:40","modified_gmt":"2022-05-09T22:29:40","slug":"10-metoo-allegations-that-have-fallen-apart","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/10-metoo-allegations-that-have-fallen-apart\/","title":{"rendered":"10 MeToo Allegations That Have Fallen Apart"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">14<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2F10-metoo-allegations-that-have-fallen-apart%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1469325&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><div><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/dw-wp-production.imgix.net\/2022\/05\/Depp-1.jpg?w=1200&#038;h=800&#038;ixlib=react-9.3.0\" class=\"ff-og-image-inserted\" alt=\"image\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span>At the height of the MeToo movement, any man with even a modicum of perceived power \u2013 from actors and directors to professors and video game developers \u2013 was seemingly at risk of being accused of inappropriate behavior.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Outside of high-profile accusations like those against Harvey Weinstein, Bill Cosby, and Charlie Rose, many men \u2013 some with limited \u201cpower\u201d \u2013 were accused of sexual misconduct. Some of the accusations boiled down to a person simply being a jerk, rather than doing anything actionable. And with Johnny Depp\u2019s current defamation trial against ex-wife Amber Heard, it\u2019s a good time to look back at some of the MeToo allegations that didn\u2019t hold up to scrutiny.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Johnny Depp<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span>Amber Heard wrote in a 2018 Washington Post op-ed that she was the victim of domestic violence. Without naming Depp, Heard included enough information to imply that she was speaking about Depp, causing him to lose his role on \u201cPirates of the Caribbean\u201d and later his role in the \u201cFantastic Beasts\u201d franchise.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Depp sued Heard for defamation, and the trial is currently underway. There is a barrage of evidence in Depp\u2019s favor, including <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/people.com\/movies\/amber-heard-admitted-starting-fights-in-audio-played-in-court\/\"><span>audio of Heard admitting to hitting Depp<\/span><\/a><span>, and testimony from numerous individuals disputing her claims while casting her as the abuser. While public opinion may have been on Heard\u2019s side initially, the trial has turned many against the \u201cAquaman\u201d actress. There is even a petition to remove her from \u201cAquaman 2,\u201d while many believe Depp has been redeemed.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Brett Kavanaugh<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span>There will always be people who, for partisan reasons, believe that Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh sexually assaulted<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailywire.com\/topic\/christine-blasey-ford\"><span> Christine Blasey Ford<\/span><\/a><span> while the two were in high school. But the fact remains that there is no evidence to prove the two had ever been in the same room. The people Blasey Ford named as having been present at the party where the assault allegedly occurred had no knowledge of her claims, her best friend at the time also threw cold water on Blasey Ford\u2019s claims.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>The second allegation against Kavanaugh, detailed in a New Yorker article, was passed on by The New York Times because the outlet couldn\u2019t corroborate the details. Those details weren\u2019t corroborated in the New Yorker, either, and even the accuser admitted she didn\u2019t know who was involved until after she discussed the matter with Democrat attorneys.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>NBC News and others highlighted the farcical claims of Julie Swetnick, even though her allegations strained credulity. She and her attorney, Michael Avenatti, were eventually criminally referred for the stunt.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Aziz Ansari<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span>The allegations against Ansari were widely criticized when they were first made on an obscure website, though some in the media did call him a \u201csexual predator.\u201d The allegations to many appeared to be displeasure after a bad date, during which Ansari appeared to misread a woman\u2019s confusing \u201cnon-verbal cues.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Despite the allegations being widely dismissed, Ansari all but disappeared for public life, losing his Netflix series \u201cMaster of None\u201d and avoiding stand up for months.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Justin Bieber<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span>A Twitter account claiming the name \u201cDanielle\u201d posted a lengthy claim that Bieber had sexually assaulted her at a Four Seasons hotel in Austin, Texas, in 2014.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Bieber systematically denied each allegation and provided evidence to back up his claims, including images showing that he had brought his then-girlfriend Selena Gomez with him to Austin and was with her when the alleged assault was supposed to have occurred. He also said that he had stayed at an AirBnB with Gomez and their friends on March 9<\/span> <span>\u2013 the night of the alleged assault \u2013 and at a Westin hotel on March 10. He provided receipts to back up his claim and said he never went to the Four Seasons hotel while in Austin, saying he had confirmed this with the regional manager.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Geoffrey Rush<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span>Oscar-winning Australian actor Geoffrey Rush obtained a multi-million dollar settlement after being accused of inappropriate behavior toward a female co-star. Rush sued The Daily Telegraph for portraying him as a \u201cpervert\u201d and a \u201csexual predator.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>In his ruling, Justice Michael Wigney wrote that Rush\u2019s accuser, Eryn Jean Norvill, did not provide evidence to back up her allegations, writing that what she did provide was \u201cnot credible or reliable and contradicted by other members of the case.\u201d Wigney further wrote that Rush\u2019s evidence defending himself was compelling.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Following the trial, Rush was accused by another actress, Yael Stone, though he denied her allegations and saying they were \u201cincorrect and in some instances have been taken completely out of context.\u201d The actor did apologize if he made her feel uncomfortable.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Steve Wynn<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span>A woman named Halina Kuta told Las Vegas police in 2018 that casino mogul Steve Wynn raped her in the early 1970s and that she was the real mother of Wynn\u2019s daughter, whom she claimed to have birthed in a gas station restroom.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Kuta\u2019s allegations were implausible, including her claim that she was a model for Pablo Picasso\u2019s painting \u201cLe Reve,\u201d which was painted more than 10 years before she was born. Even though her claims were implausible, the media still reported them. Wynn sued for defamation and won.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Junot Diaz<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span>Pulitzer Prize-winner Junot Diaz\u2019s story may not be as well known as others on this list, but it is disturbing nonetheless. Three women accused Diaz of some forms of abuse. The accusations, at worst, amounted to jerkish behavior \u2013 nowhere near what was alleged against Harvey Weinstein.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>The accusations also turned out to be greatly exaggerated or outright false. Zinzi Clemmons claimed Diaz forcibly kissed her at an event, yet she sent him a friendly email after that event without any indication she was upset about anything. A witness who saw her after the event described her as \u201cdelighted, not shaken,\u201d <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bostonglobe.com\/metro\/2018\/06\/30\/junot-diaz-case-may-metoo-turning-point\/3TMFseenE4Go1eVsqbFSxM\/story.html\"><span>according to<\/span><\/a><span> The Boston Globe.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Carmen Maria Machado claimed that when she criticized a character in Diaz\u2019s book, he <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.newsday.com\/opinion\/columnists\/cathy-young\/metoo-junot-diaz-1.19768763\"><span>responded<\/span><\/a><span> with \u201ca blast of misogynist rage and public humiliation.\u201d Audio of the exchange, however, showed that Diaz was perfectly polite and did not spew any \u201c rage\u201d at her.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Monica Byrne claimed Diaz yelled at her during a dinner argument, calling it a \u201cverbal sexual assault.\u201d Far from it, Byrne had told Diaz that an excerpt of her book had been rejected by The New Yorker and questioned whether the rejection was due to gender bias. Diaz reportedly responded: \u201cI don\u2019t know if you know how statistics work, but that\u2019s like saying if you haven\u2019t been raped then nobody\u2019s been raped.\u201d Byrne then classified the comment as \u201ccompletely bizarre, disproportionate, and violent.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Ali Zafar<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span>The <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailywire.com\/news\/she-claimed-he-groped-her-launching-pakistans-metoo-movement-she-now-faces-three-years-in-jail-for-criminal-defamation\"><span>allegations<\/span><\/a><span> against singer Ali Zafar launched Pakistan\u2019s MeToo movement, but they were rocky from the start. His accuser, fellow singer Meesha Shafi, tried to have her case adjudicated under Pakistan\u2019s law against sexual harassment in the workplace, but could not because she was not an employee of Zafar\u2019s when they toured together. She claimed he groped her in a recording studio at his home as they practiced for the tour. Nine witnesses, including two women, denied the groping took place. One of the female witnesses said that Zafar and Shafi were five to six feet away from each other at all times.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Zafar filed a defamation claim against Shafi and other accusers, discovering that one attorney was behind the allegations and that the accusers were all linked prior to making their claims. Zafar won his defamation claim and a criminal claim against Shafi and the other women.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Alexander Payne<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span>Rose McGowan, one of the main faces of the MeToo movement, claimed that in the late 1980s, director Alexander Payne \u201cplayed a soft-core porn movie\u201d for her that he had \u201cdirected for Showtime under a different name.\u201d She further accused him of grooming and raping her \u2013 all when she was just 15.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Payne <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailywire.com\/news\/sideways-director-alexander-payne-strongly-denies-rose-mcgowans-sexual-assault-allegation\"><span>responded<\/span><\/a><span> with a very clear denial: He was a full-time student at UCLA between 1984 and 1990 and had never met McGowan during that time and therefore could not have shown her anything he directed since he hadn\u2019t directed anything professionally at that time. He also said he had never worked for Showtime and had never directed anything under a different name. Further, he noted that he first met McGowan in 1991 (when she was of age) and that they went on a couple dates.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>McGowan responded to Payne\u2019s denial by <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/variety.com\/2020\/film\/news\/alexander-payne-rose-mcgowan-sexual-misconduct-allegations-1234759987\/\"><span>telling<\/span><\/a><span> Variety: \u201cF*** him and his lies is my comment.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Alec Klein<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span>Alec Klein, a profess or of journalism at Northwestern University,\u00a0 was accused by multiple students and staff members of sexual misconduct. Allegations stretched from inappropriate comments to attempting to kiss a woman prior to hiring her. Klein didn\u2019t do anything to defend himself when the allegations first occurred, rightfully seeing that he would not be believed in the fervor of the MeToo movement.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>In 2020, however, he <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailywire.com\/news\/he-was-accused-of-sexual-harassment-by-students-who-had-written-him-glowing-professor-reviews-his-new-book-fights-back\"><span>wrote<\/span><\/a><span> a book about his experience, including evidence contradicting the claims. Some of those claims came from students who had years earlier (at the time they said the misconduct occurred) written \u201cstellar evaluations\u201d of his work as a professor.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>The woman who claimed Klein made sexual advances toward her when she applied for a job never substantiated her claims and allegedly made inconsistent statements in her original accusation. Klein wrote that he was surprised his \u201cuniversity did not even lift a finger when it should be defending him even after deciding that those allegations were false three years ago.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Those In The Gray Area<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span>Hundreds of men were accused during the MeToo movement, but the ones listed in this article are not the only ones who are likely innocent. Many were accused of jerkish behavior, rather than anything criminal.And many of these men were unable to provide definitive evidence to back up their denials, since that is what is needed to dispute such an allegation. Accusers, meanwhile, only have to make a claim and they are mostly protected from questions.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><i>The views expressed in this opinion piece are the author\u2019s own and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.<\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>At the height of the MeToo movement, any man with even a modicum of perceived power \u2013 from actors and directors to professors and video game developers \u2013 was seemingly<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":126,"featured_media":1482176,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1469325","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1469325","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/126"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1469325"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1469325\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1482176"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1469325"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1469325"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1469325"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}