u/milno_1

Justin Baldoni has been a problem across multiple productions. Coworkers have called him verbally abusive, intimidating, disingenuous…with more than one saying that working with him was the worst experience of their careers. Blake has had a good reputation in her 20 year history until IEWU. Juston’s billionaire partner, Steve Sarowitz said he would spend 100 million to protect his studio (lied and said he didn’t bit actually did) which apparently meant endless $ to destroy Blake Lively - without leaving fingerprints - BEFORE there was a lawsuit…because they were worried that their shit show IEWU set “might” become public.

They won the PR war. The total social take down of Blake lively that they ordered up, paid millions for, and executed using digital warfare, as promised, more than delivered. The fact that his smear team of Melissa Nathan, Bryan, Freedman, and Jed Wallace are now being implicated or sued in other smear campaigns will be the silver lining in exposing these high stakes Hollywood smear campaigns. It doesn’t matter who you are, nobody’s going to survive this level of attack. It is shocking and unprecedented.

THIS IS RESPECT AND MOVING FORWARD CONSTRUCTIVELY FOR JUSTIN BALDONI AND JAMEY HEATH PEOPLE!!

Heath and Baldoni: calling up for their pap walks, is embarrassing to say the least, but another point of trying to flood the zone while they have their team out there smearing in every way they possibly can. After lying that they wanted to move on "constructively, with peace and a respectful environment online." And instead have their entire team piling on the harassment and brigading for further harassment.

This is them at their hearts. This is the lying and performative nature that everyone clocked. They say one thing and do the opposite.

Heath and his whole family using Mother's day to devalue another mother's experience. Who spoke up to him about his own behavior on a professional. In private, not online or anywhere else. Requesting directly, for just a little respect and professionalism in the workplace. After shaming a mother of 4 births, with a naked video of his wife giving birth, AFTER the birth scene had already been filmed. That she doesn't know how it should be done.

And that's not even getting into barging into her trailer while multiple people said no no no. And staring at her naked. These people will continue with Hostile work environments, because they have not learnt a thing. And not remotely sorry for their own behavior.

Freedman: was doing the smear tour before the thing was even settled. Panicking on the phone with Bush that there's a problem, this thing is not settled. Goes on to call her a liar. Claim she was scared to testify. She's a brat. This is their version of respect online. To brigade.

Paula Froelich: Who just interviews Boshoff. Who spends half her career smearing Meghan, Dutchess of Sussex, getting in on it and stating Blake was so mean to makeup artists and all the little people. To whom? Where are these people you're claiming? None that actually knew her have said that.

Alison Boshoff: Who was actively involved in planting stories and part of the smear campaign insinuating that everyone gets sexually harassed. It's normal. She was even chased around a room at the Beverley Hills Hotel. Basically you should just shut up and take it like everyone else. Nice, while you participated in smearing this person and STILL are.

Fritz: who has done the rounds of the CC's (I guess the actual media didn't want him?) and claimed, there are really problems out there. Like DV. So women being SH'd, hostile work environment and retaliation = not a real concern. I hope all women heard that. You should not be concerned about your workplace, when you should just be comparing your experience to DV and feeling good about that.

Adam Mondschein: Clearly the most thirsty. Gone on every single interview that will have him. Doing the most to continue the "terrorism" narrative and double down on why they tried to smear her as a terrorist to ever single person and exec on that set.

This isn't even half the list. The smear campaign has been in force. Throwing on the upvotes, and downvotes (Huge jumps in that on some subs). And SEO algorithms very obviously being currently manipulated.

Meanwhile Blake and her attorneys continue to rise above. Getting on with their lives. Being respectful and constructive. Discussing the details of the case and law. Going about their business and what the case is for them. 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼

Wayfarer Studios recently announced production on Dinner with Audrey, a biographical drama centered on the legendary 40-year friendship between Audrey Hepburn and designer Hubert de Givenchy. The film, which features Thomasin McKenzie as Hepburn, has drawn significant attention due to the casting of Ansel Elgort as Givenchy.   

The decision is particularly notable because Wayfarer Studios was co-founded by Justin Baldoni, who has built a brand around "pro-feminism" and redefining masculinity. Elgort’s leading role has sparked renewed discussion regarding allegations of sexual harassment and assault made by several women in 2020—claims the actor has denied, characterizing his past behavior as "immature" but maintaining that his relationships were consensual.

Gabby:

On June 19, 2020, a woman named Gabby posted a statement to Twitter alleging that actor Ansel Elgort sexually assaulted her in 2014 when she was 17 and he was 20. According to her account, the interaction began when she sent him a direct message shortly before her 17th birthday. Elgort reportedly responded by providing his private Snapchat account and requesting nude photos. 

"The two met up and the relationship quickly turned sexual. Gabby stated that Elgort was her first and it was really painful but he ignored her cries of pain."

She wrote: "I was just a kid and was a fan of him, so when it happened instead of asking me if I wanted to stop having sex knowing it was my first time and I was sobbing in pain and I didn't want to do it the only words that came out of his mouth were, 'We need to break you in.' I WASNT there in that moment mentally. I dissociated myself and just felt like my mind was gone and I was in shock ... I couldn't leave, I was only 5'2" and 98 pounds."

She added: "Years later, I have PTSD, I have panic attacks, I go to therapy. Finally, I'm ready to talk about it and finally heal.

"I'm not posting this to 'clout chase' because I simply don't care for that," she shared. "I just want to heal and I want to tell other girls who have been through the same s--t as me. You're not alone. It's a lot for me to even come on here and tell my story. I simply don't want to post it all."

Madison:

In June 2020, following the initial allegations against Ansel Elgort, a second woman named Madison shared screenshots on Twitter/X detailing her own past interactions with the actor. According to her account, Elgort reached out to her and asked what grade she was in; when she replied that she was entering the 11th grade and was 16 years old, Elgort allegedly noted that 16 was the legal age of consent in Georgia.

Madison claimed that Elgort encouraged her to message his "secret" Snapchat account and mentioned that he had never previously hooked up with a fan. The two eventually met for two dates, which Madison noted she felt "lucky" had taken place in public settings. “At the age of 16, I was not aware how predatory and creepy this behavior was. Now as a woman in her 20s, I see this for what it is,” she said.

Erin: 

On June 19, 2020, another Twitter user came forward with allegations in a post that has since been deleted. She claimed that in 2014, while she was an eighth-grade student and only 14 years old, Ansel Elgort sent her unsolicited dick pics via Twitter.

She characterized his behavior as "predatory," noting that their communication turned sexual shortly after the actor began following her fan account. Reflecting on the experience, she wrote “I was 14, I had NO idea what was going on, and I was terrified.”

Esther: 

On April 1, 2020—months before Gabby’s allegations went viral—a Twitter user named Esther (@steeeeerr) posted a series of tweets in French directed at Ansel Elgort. Noting that the actor still followed her, Esther asked if he remembered messaging her when she was 15 and he was 21. 

To support her claims, she shared screenshots of alleged Snapchat conversations from that period. The messages reportedly showed Elgort inviting her to his hotel room during an upcoming trip to London and admitting he "could get in trouble" if anyone found out he wanted to kiss her. Additionally, Esther posted a screenshot allegedly showing the actor asking if she wanted to send him "something sexy."

It's going to be interesting to see if Wayfarer will again engage the services of their favorite victim smearers that make their living helping problematic men continue being problematic. Have they now joined the A team?

Misogynoir and disparities for black women:

It’s an age-old trope: A man in the entertainment industry is accused of violence by a prominent woman.

She files charges or brings a lawsuit: And the almost immediate response is the victim/accuser is the one who must experience a trial by the public and media. Speculation, memes, called a liar, mocked and discredited.

For women of color, those layers of misogyny intersect with race and impact both inside of the courtroom, and the macro environment.

“It’s real that the criminal legal system disproportionately punishes Black and Brown men, but Black women are left holding the bag and have to protect Black men from the criminal legal system.”

“Often, Black women don’t get the privilege of being victims,” Tyree said. “Often in society, Black women are the second to be seen as someone who has been victimized, second to be seen as someone who has legitimate health care problems, second to be seen as someone facing real social ills. So when Black women come forward, they are not believed.” https://19thnews.org/2022/12/megan-thee-stallion-testimony-justice/

Background and becoming Megan Thee Stallion. Strength and Loss:

Megan Pete’s mother, Holly Thomas, introduced and surrounded her with hip hop from a very young age. As a rapper herself, Holly plunged Megan into the hip hop world, and she soon started writing her own raps. By the age of 14, Megan was writing raps and setting the stage for her future career. Though Holly would ask Megan to wait until 21 to delve into the industry, she would spend years building her brand and refining her “Hot Girl” persona. With her confidence on stage and original lyrics, Megan exploded onto the scene. Winning her first Grammy 5 years later in 2021 for Best New Artist, at 26 years old.

She achieved major success for a young woman in a difficult to penetrate male oriented scene like hip hop. And used her platform to be a vocal advocate for women’s empowerment and black mental health. Losing her father at 15, and then mother followed by grandmother in quick succession only 8 years later, Megan’s life has been marred by tragedy, giving her the personal experience that would drive her passion for advocacy.  

A show of strength and empowerment that would be both a blessing and a curse. And eventually weaponized against her, with harsh criticism and an assumption she could take it. Despite the astronomical personal loss and inspirational ability to be driven and ambitious throughout, a 2020 shooting incident would see Megan face endless speculation and judgement. And still she continued to push. Graduating from University in 2021 with a Bachelor of Science in health administration, while continuing the advancement of her music career.
https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/megan-thee-stallion-college-graduation-interview-1270746/

2020: The shooting incident, misogynoir and unrelenting harassment:

In July 2020, Megan Pete, was shot in both feet by rapper Tory Lanez. An incident that led to her having to have surgery to remove bullet fragments from her feet and fearing for her life. Something that along with understanding all too well the justice landscape for black women, caused Megan to hesitate before reporting exactly what happened to police. Initially making up excuses and protecting others involved.

After eventually speaking up and naming her attacker, Megan was subjected to a sustained campaign of harassment. Later in 2023, saying to Rolling Stone “I could have let the adversity break me, but I persevered, even as people treated my trauma like a running joke.”

A corner of society used her fear and hesitation to invalidate her experience, say analysts in a Vox article. Despite having the physical evidence of bullet fragments from her feet and testimony, a segment of the public - including other artists, content creators, the public and bloggers - accused her of lying.

Instead of this incident being met with the compassion and the support you would expect the victim of a violent crime to receive, Megan had to endure endless victim-blaming, memes, public mockery, and disbelief. Outright called a liar and made fun of, while slut-shaming for her sexy public music persona and confidence.  

Megan has openly spoken about the "torture" of having to defend herself while recovering from physical and mental injuries, with critics even mocking her pain in memes. “Imagine being forced to relive the most traumatizing moment of your life. Not just in private, where it would be painful enough. But in public, where you’re facing sexist, racist, and vicious harassment.” https://nwlc.org/a-terrible-storm-megan-thee-stallion-misogynoir-and-leaving-black-survivors-unprotected/

Targeted and public mockery that included things like:

• Peers, including 50 Cent, Cam’ron, DJ Akademiks, and Drake, publicly mocked her on social media, with some sharing memes making light of the shooting.
• “Larry Johnson tweeted, “Ladies, if you date a man who coined the term ‘Demon Time,’ and you get shot by him during Demon Hours, be accountable for YOUR stupidity.” https://www.vice.com/en/article/the-reaction-to-megan-thee-stallions-alleged-shooting-is-misogynoir-in-action-experts/
• Bloggers and online personalities spreading false narratives that she was never shot, or even that she was the aggressor.
• Tory Lanez, and his supporters using social media to create doubt and mock her trauma.

 “Black women are rarely seen as victims but are instead treated as if they are deserving of violence. “
“It grows out of this idea about our humanity and that we are seen as less than human, not actually women, some other kind of non-human species.” https://www.vice.com/en/article/the-reaction-to-megan-thee-stallions-alleged-shooting-is-misogynoir-in-action-experts/

“A 2019 report from the Georgetown Law’s Center on Poverty and Inequality found that Black girls are regularly subjected to “adultification bias,” where they are viewed as less innocent than their white peers, and less deserving of protection.” https://www.endadultificationbias.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/Listening-to-Black-Women-and-Girls-v7.pdf

Tory Lanez launched a ‘smear campaign’ against her:

Megan alleged that Tory Lanez orchestrated a public smear campaign against her. To discredit and impede her ability to get justice while attempting to intimidate her and chill her desire to continue speaking out.

“We have been made aware of manipulated text messages and invented email accounts that have been disseminated to the media in a calculated attempt to peddle a false narrative about the events that occurred on July the 12th,” Megan’s attorney, Alex Spiro, told Page Six on Friday. “A smear campaign can’t change the truth.” https://pagesix.com/2020/09/25/megan-thee-stallions-team-accuses-tory-lanez-of-launching-smear-campaign-against-her/

Suspicious email addresses were promoting articles like those in Page Six that claimed to be an interview from Lanez’s alleged bodyguard, in which he defended the Lanez as someone who had never been violent. Despite a recent lawsuit for assault. https://www.rap-up.com/article/2021/05/11/tory-lanez-alleged-attack-love-hip-hop-prince

And other suss email addresses were leaking texts they asserted to be between Megan and Lanez immediately after the shooting. Despite teams for both Megan and Lanez confirmed the texts were doctored, the public speculation and belief in the truth of these thigs prevailed.

Page Six was also sent an email purporting to be from a nightclub promoter, that stated that Megan’s record label, “contacted” them wanting to get in touch with ‘Prince’ , who had also filed a lawsuit against Lanez after a surprise attack in a club. The email address didn’t match any other employees from the company. https://pagesix.com/2020/09/25/megan-thee-stallions-team-accuses-tory-lanez-of-launching-smear-campaign-against-her/

Then there was “Gramz” (Milagro Cooper) a content creator who suddenly became popular by commenting on Lanez’s case. Who pushed online narratives that portrayed Megan as dishonest and unreliable. Megan’s lawsuit allege’s that Lanez fed Gramz disinformation and false claims about evidence and claims of “inconsistencies” in Megan’s testimony. Live testimony that Gramz also “broadcast to her audience.” https://www.lawcommentary.com/articles/tory-lanez-held-in-contempt-as-megan-thee-stallions-civil-trial-against-blogger-begins

Continued Victimization via the smear campaign:

Even after successfully getting a conviction on three felony counts that saw Lanez found guilty of Megan’s shooting, and sentenced Lanez to 10 years in prison - the harassment did not stop. In 2024 Megan eventually was forced to file a restraining order that stated that Lanez was continuing to use bloggers to bully her from prison. https://variety.com/2024/music/news/megan-thee-stallion-tory-lanez-restraining-order-harassment-1236252816/

Megan then sued the hip hop content creator, Gramz, for her participation in the online smear campaign against her. Megan declared Gramz was deliberately spreading false and harmful information about her at the bidding of Tory Lanez. Stating that Gramz was “a paid mouthpiece” for both Lanez and his father. https://www.complex.com/music/a/joshua-espinoza/megan-stallion-gramz-lawsuit-sanction-deleted-text-messages

A forensic investigation was initiated that found that Gramz had deleted texts and whatsapp messages from her devices against the orders of the court to preserve all data related to Lanez and his dad. The Judge found that Gramz was aware she had a duty to preserve and there was sufficient evidence that her "pattern of deletions indicate bad faith spoliation, inherently prejudicing Plaintiff" leading to sanctions.

"It’s time to hold bloggers accountable for years of harassment, cyberbullying, and the publication of misinformation about my personal and professional life," Megan said in a 2024 statement announcing the lawsuit. "I’ve endured countless attacks on my character based on false narratives from social media bloggers misrepresenting themselves as journalists. It’s unacceptable behavior and these individuals need to understand there will be repercussions for recklessly posting lies and defamatory falsehoods."
https://www.complex.com/music/a/joshua-espinoza/megan-stallion-gramz-lawsuit-sanction-deleted-text-messages

It only took jurors two days to deliberate and find Gramz liable for defamation, intentional infliction of emotional distress, and contributing to the distribution and visibility of a deepfake video. Megan won $75,000 in damages, that including punitive damages. Florida law also mean that Gramz would be responsible for Megan’s legal fees.

Megan’s testimony in the case spoke of the damage the harassment did to her mental health and the embarrassment she felt due to a deepfake video that circulated online. “I know it’s not me,” she testified, “but to be in front of everybody else, and they have to watch it, it’s really embarrassing.” Close friends of Megan’s testified that the situation prompted her to seek treatment at a mental-health facility.

https://www.lawcommentary.com/articles/megan-thee-stallion-wins-defamation-case-against-blogger-in-miami-federal-court#:~:text=Yes%2C%20Megan%20Thee%20Stallion%20won%20her%20defamation,Stallion%20$75%2C000%20in%20damages%2C%20including%20punitive%20damages.

And during all this Megan’s advocacy was steadfast. Partnering with the Ad council for the “Seize the Awkward” PSA and telling the world “Y'all, it's okay not to be okay.” https://www.instagram.com/reels/CxqIhngOEB5/

Megan and others like her, should not have to fight for our support:

Megan Thee Stallion’s experience emphasizes a system that’s broken. One where high profile women are forced to not only prove their victimization and experience, but that they deserve the very basic right of being able to speak up and seek justice.  

Megan explained in interviews, she “didn't fit the profile of a victim." Her strength was used against her, and it was used to create a false narrative and shame that she was somehow responsible for her own assault. Victims should not have to fit a "perfect victim" profile while facing relentless harassment. Just to be worthy of not even belief, but the simple respect of having a voice and proving her case before being judged and dismissed. Fighting alone against the painfully evident misogynoir just to have a voice. https://www.forbes.com/sites/janicegassam/2022/12/23/how-megan-thee-stallions-shooting-case-reveals-our-internalized-misogynoir/

Even with Lanez convicted and behind bars, the harassment has persisted, leading to Megan having to continually speak up about her trauma and how never being allowed to stop reliving this, harms her well-being. With some in the public and celebrities like Drake, Ye, Chris Brown and Amber Rose, still publicly supporting Lanez and calling for his release from prison. Making claims of new evidence, while repeating things that were already covered in the trial. Lanez releasing music from prison with songs like “Wish I never met you,” that debuted at #1. Proving once again, men are never truly cancelled.   https://www.forbes.com/sites/hughmcintyre/2024/08/07/tory-lanez-charts-a-new-hit-one-he-recorded-in-prison/

Megan Thee Stallion is a survivor of trauma and loss, a violent assault by a famous man, and a smear campaign that did everything to try and break her. The toxic narratives that seek to discredit and shame Black women from speaking up or seeking justice, are dangerous for all women.

As Megan wrote in a New York Times op-ed, "Black women deserve to be protected as human beings." We believe that for all women, but black women especially need more help. We must reject the normalization of harassment of women for speaking up against their experience at the hands of violent and abusive men. Megan Thee Stallion is a champion for black women. We should all follow her example and champion her. And the other women like her - who face a system with layers that intersect with the social construct that controls our lives.

Let the legal system establish the case. Support victim/survivors and allow them the voice they deserve. We can all make a difference. No one should be subjected to attacks on their honor and reputation. Everyone has the right to protection against such interference or attacks. https://www.un.org/en/about-us/universal-declaration-of-human-rights