The Secrets Behind “The Talented Mr. Epstein”

About this episode

Vicky Ward reflects on her reporting of Jeffrey Epstein and the editorial decisions that shaped her Vanity Fair profile.

More To The Story: In 2002, journalist Vicky Ward—then a writer for Vanity Fair magazine—was assigned to investigate a mysterious New York City financier named Jeffrey Epstein. During her reporting, she stumbled upon sexual abuse allegations against Epstein by Maria and Annie Farmer whose account was ultimately cut from Ward’s piece, titled “The Talented Mr. Epstein.” That decision sparked recriminations between Ward and then- Vanity Fair editor Graydon Carter that have continued for more than a decade. On this week’s episode, Ward looks back at the editorial decisions surrounding her 2003 Vanity Fair profile of Epstein, the role Ghislaine Maxwell played in Epstein’s crimes, and shares what she thinks about the circumstances surrounding the convicted sex offender’s death. Following our interview with Ward, we reached out to Maria and Annie Farmer for comment. Portions of their response appear in this week's episode, and their full comment can be read here . We also reached back out to Vicky Ward. Her response to the Farmer sisters’ statement can be found in full here . RAINN's National Sexual Assault Hotline: 800-656-HOPE Producer: Josh Sanburn with help from Ashley Cleek |…

People in this episode

Host: Al Letson

Guest: Vicky Ward

Topics covered

• Jeffrey Epstein
• journalism
• sexual abuse allegations
• editorial decisions
• Vanity Fair
• Ghislaine Maxwell
• media ethics

Keywords

• Jeffrey Epstein
• Vicky Ward
• Vanity Fair
• Ghislaine Maxwell
• sexual abuse
• editorial decisions
• Maria Farmer
• Annie Farmer
• Graydon Carter
• journalism

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Vanity Fair, RAINN, The Center for Investigative Reporting, PRX

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