New York Times apologizes for ‘inappropriate and offensive’ tweet about Kavanaugh sexual misconduct allegation

When the New York Times revealed a new allegation of sexual misconduct against Supreme Court Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh this weekend, the political world was again thrown into turmoil. Democrats, including several presidential candidates, called for further investigations and impeachment, while President Trump and top Republicans staunchly defended the embattled judge.

But amid that furor, the Times also weathered fierce criticism over how it framed the news and promoted it on social media. On Sunday, the newspaper apologized for a tweet that said the type of misconduct in the claim against Kavanaugh “may seem like harmless fun” and updated the article to reflect that the woman at the center of the latest allegation reportedly does not recall the incident.

The Times wrote that the tweet “was clearly inappropriate and offensive. We apologize for it and are reviewing the decision-making with those involved.”

Drawing on reporting from an upcoming book by two Times reporters, Saturday’s piece focused largely on Deborah Ramirez, who came forward last year to accuse the then-Supreme Court nominee of exposing himself to her during a dorm party at Yale University in the 1980s. The article, an essay adapted from the book, was published in the Times’s Opinion section and was titled “Brett Kavanaugh Fit In With the Privileged Kids. She Did Not.”

Through their reporting, the writers said they corroborated Ramirez’s account with at least seven people and also uncovered an allegation that Kavanaugh displayed inappropriate behavior toward another woman in college. A classmate named Max Stier alleged that he saw Kavanaugh with his pants down at a different dorm party, where he said friends pushed Kavanaugh’s penis into the hand of a female student. The reporters wrote that senators and the FBI were aware of Stier’s claim but that the FBI did not investigate. (Last year, The Washington Post independently confirmed that lawmakers and authorities knew of the claim, but did not publish a story because the alleged witnesses were not identified and the woman said to be involved declined to comment.)

Kavanaugh has denied the previously reported allegations and declined to speak with the Times about the newly surfaced account.