WHAT A HEEL: Sailor Alleges Reverse Sexual Harassment By Woman
In a classic man-bites-dog story, Navy spokesman Cmdr. Jeffrey Gordon is accusing Miami Herald military reporter Carol Rosenberg of "multiple incidents of abusive and degrading comments of an explicitly sexual nature" in letter he describes as a "formal sexual harassment complaint" and wants the paper to conduct a "thorough investigation," reports The Washington Post:
"Her behavior has been so atrocious over the years," Gordon said in an interview. "I've been abused worse than the detainees have been abused." …
Gordon, 41, detailed a number of "vile and repulsive comments" he attributed to Rosenberg, stretching back to last summer. In the July 22 letter, Gordon alleges that:
While watching Sept. 11, 2001, co-defendant Mustafa al-Hawsawi seated on a pillow in court last year, Rosenberg told Gordon: "Have you ever had a red hot poker shoved up your [butt]? Have you ever had a broomstick shoved up your [butt]? …How would you know how it feels if it never happened to you? Admit it, you liked it." …
Rosenberg told Gordon, earlier this month, in the presence of others: "I know you're hot for your interns and bring them down as your 'companions,' but seriously, if I'm going to do their work anyway, what purpose do they serve? (Carol knows my intern last year was a male, therefore another inference that I was gay.)" …
Jamie McIntyre, a former CNN Pentagon correspondent, said of Rosenberg's interactions with Gordon: "I didn't think there was any sort of sexual abuse, unless you're telling me a naval officer, a sailor, isn't used to hearing anatomical references in anger. It sounds like an overreaction on everybody's part." He said Rosenberg "was always professional in her demeanor when I was around her." …
Josh White, a Post reporter who previously covered the Pentagon, said that Rosenberg "would treat [Gordon] and others in an aggressive, sometimes demeaning way. It's hard for me to say whether it was abusive or harassment."
Leaving aside the question of whether such behavior constitutes sexual harassment – Gordon mainly seems to take exception to Rosenberg’s repeated insinuations about his sexual orientation – this reporter’s naked hostility towards the spokesman and towards Gitmo makes one wonder how fair and objective her reporting was.
[Hat Tip: The Heel, an Ivy-educated attorney with a prestigious New York firm, and occasional contributor to this blog.]
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