Les Moonves’ alma mater Bucknell University has removed references to the CBS chief executive from its website amid sexual misconduct accusations posed against him by six women.
After PennLive.com first reported references to Moonves had been removed from the Bucknell website, a spokesperson for the university told TheWrap Monday that Moonves’ name was not scrubbed entirely, but that pages that “celebrate [Moonves’] relationship” with Bucknell had been removed. This included mentions of the commencement speech Moonves, a 1971 graduate, gave at the school in 2016.
“As President [John] Bravman stated in a note to campus as soon as we learned of the allegations against Mr. Moonves, Bucknell will not stand for sexual misconduct — on campus or beyond,” a statement from the university provided to TheWrap said. “In light of the allegations against Mr. Moonves, we removed certain pages from our website that celebrate his relationship with the University, and we are evaluating any additional actions that may be appropriate.”
Here’s the email, obtained by TheWrap, Bucknell University president Bravman sent to students, faculty and staff on Friday, when the initial news surfaced that sexual misconduct accusations against Moonves were to be published in the New Yorker:
“You may be aware of media reports about a yet-to-be-published article that is said to contain allegations of sexual misconduct against Les Moonves, Class of 1971. Given Mr. Moonves’ visibility as a prominent alumnus, I felt the need to let you know that we are aware of these reports. As I write this note, the article itself has not yet been published, so we do not have specific details about the allegations. We are monitoring the situation closely, and, once more information is available, we will react accordingly. Sexual misconduct is unacceptable — on campus or beyond, and Bucknell will not stand for such behavior.”
CBS shares fell about 4 percent in early morning trading to $51.90 a share. The company’s stock has dropped 10 percent since Friday when Moonves was accused of forcibly touching and kissing women during business meetings in Ronan Farrow’s latest New Yorker report.
At Monday’s meeting, the board is expected to select a committee to oversee an investigation into Moonves’s actions and to take a broad look at the workplace culture at the network, according to the Wall Street Journal. A person with knowledge of the CBS board’s schedule confirmed to TheWrap that there was a previously planned meeting of the board of directors set for Monday.
In Farrow’s New Yorker story, six women accused Moonves of sexual harassment, with four of them accusing the CEO of forcibly touching or kissing them during business meetings, and two saying he physically intimidated them or threatened to derail their careers. All of the women, including actress and writer Illeana Douglas, told Farrow that they feared retaliation if they spoke out.