NEW YORK — CBS News said on Tuesday it had fired Charlie Rose, one of the most prominent American interviewers, the day after the Washington Post reported the television host had sexually harassed eight women.
Rose, a native of Henderson, N.C., who received both his bachelor’s degree in history and juris doctorate from Duke University, was a co-host on the morning show “CBS This Morning” and a correspondent for its long-running Sunday night news magazine “60 Minutes.” The “Charlie Rose” show was broadcast on PBS and Bloomberg TV.
“A short time ago we terminated Charlie Rose’s employment with CBS News, effective immediately,” CBS News President David Rhodes said in an internal message that was shared with media. “This followed the revelation yesterday of extremely disturbing and intolerable behavior said to have revolved around his PBS program.”
On Monday, PBS and Bloomberg said in statements they were suspending Rose’s signature interview show, distributed on both outlets, citing the allegations in the newspaper story.
“These allegations are extremely disturbing and we take them very seriously,” CBS News said in a statement. Rose is a co-host on the morning show “CBS This Morning” and a correspondent for its long-running Sunday night news magazine “60 Minutes.”
Rose could not immediately be reached to comment on Tuesday, but on Monday apologized for his “inappropriate behavior.” Rose, 75, however, also questioned the accuracy of the allegations in the Washington Post.
“I deeply apologize for my inappropriate behavior,” he said in a statement. “I am greatly embarrassed. I have behaved insensitively at times and I accept responsibility for that, though I do not believe that all of these allegations are accurate.
“I always felt that I was pursuing shared feelings, even though I now realize I was mistaken,” he added.
Eight women, who worked at Charlie Rose Inc. or aspired to a job there, have accused Rose of making unwanted sexual advances toward them, the Washington Post reported on Monday, the latest in a wave of sexual harassment allegations against prominent men in the entertainment and media industries and American politics.
“All of us, including me, are coming to a newer and deeper recognition of the pain caused by conduct in the past, and have come to a profound new respect for women and their lives,” Rose said.
Rose routinely landed the biggest names in international politics, entertainment and letters for his interview show “Charlie Rose,” which was broadcast on PBS and Bloomberg TV.
An acute listener, Rose employed an engaging yet serious style in contrast to the bitter partisan arguments, cross-talk and raised voices on cable television. True to the show’s sober tone, the set was simply a table and chairs with an all-black background.
His persona on “CBS This Morning” was a little more whimsical, given the lighter subject matter of morning news shows in the United States.
The eight women, who were employees or aspired to work for Rose at the “Charlie Rose” show from the late 1990s to as recently as 2011, told the newspaper he made unwanted sexual advances toward them, walked in the nude around them and groped their breasts, buttocks and genital areas.
The Post said it had multiple interviews with the eight women, who ranged in age from 21 to 37 at the time of the alleged encounters and their stories had “striking commonalities.”
Three of the eight women spoke on the record to the newspaper and the other five spoke on condition of anonymity fearing retribution that could affect their careers, the Post said.
