I would encourage people to see the movie and read the story behind it and then come to that conclusion, Hamm told me, referring to The Suspect: An Olympic Bombing, The FBI, The Media, And Richard Jewell, The Man Caught In The Middle, by Kent Alexander and Kevin Salwen, another source for the movie. She was the real deal when it came to being a dedicated reporter, attorney and family friend Edward Tolley told the AJC in a 2019 feature on Scruggs, adding that the portrayal of her as a floozy was complete horse [expletive]., My concern is theyre going to turn her into some sort of femme fatale who would do anything to get a story, said former AJC reporter Ron Martz, who added that no one from the film ever got in touch with him. The films depiction of her is not only wrong, but unnecessary. He appeared on the 10 Most Wanted Fugitives list all five years, and there was a million-dollar reward offered for any info. Age, Height, Salary, Net Worth, Podcast, Andrew Nichols CBC Salary, Age, Height, Wife, College, Net Worth, Ashley Willcott Court Tv Husband, Age, Height, Salary, Net Worth, Craig Herrera FOX Weather Salary, Age, Husband, Leaving KING 5. They had noneand neither did the FBI. For his part, Scruggs Jr. sounds resigned to the fact that he's unlikely to get any kind of apology from Eastwood or the rest of the team behind "Richard Jewell." "I wish I could say it . Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Getty It crushed her like a june bug on the sidewalk.. Shewould wear that frustration on her sleeve. By then, Scruggs had been dead for a decade. By contrast, when Kathy Scruggs died in 2001 of a drug overdose (possibly deliberate, according to The Suspect) just shy of age 43, she was still fighting court battles over her story. Someone saw him running from the scene and took down his license. Tom Brokaw, who said the FBI probably had enough to convict Jewell but were just trying to collect all the evidence, does get a soundbite in the film. That decision ultimately led her to Asheville and then Atlanta, to the story that would change her life. Scene Stealer: The True Lies of Elisabeth Finch, Part 1, Scene Stealer: The True Lies of Elisabeth Finch, Part 2. Kathy did not personally apologize to Richard Jewell, However, the story haunted her until her death. After Jewell was cleared, the media blamed her for making it public that Jewell was a suspect. In a feature last month, the Atlanta Journal Constitution reported that Scruggs was disturbed by a lawsuit naming the AJC. ", She went on to say, I think people have a hard time accepting sexuality in female characters without allowing it to entirely define that character. "You always knew when Kathy was in the room," said her former colleagueJohn Gouch. Decades later, how Scruggs is portrayed as a journalist is at the center of controversy that surrounds the film "Richard Jewell." Even highly respected journalists like Katie Couric tracked Jewell down when he canceled an interview with her. Please consider becominga subscriber. https://t.co/Wii3yiCK7y. ), Fact Vs. Fiction In Richard Jewell: A Look At Why Kathy Scruggs Deserved Better, The Best Coachella 2023 Performances Were Reflections Of Pure Joy, My (Non-Anonymous) Ballot For The 2023 Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame, HBOs White House Plumbers Delivers An Absurd Historical Snapshot And A Knockout Performance From Justin Theroux, The Rundown: Ted Lasso Has Created A Delightful Little I Think You Should Leave Conundrum, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. While others were under suspicion, Martz at least thought Jewell was the lead suspect. Or at least, one FBI agent in particular fed her the story. That article headlined FBI Suspects Hero Guard May Have Planted Bomb set off a media firestorm around Jewell from which he never really recovered, even after being cleared of the crime. By no means was I intending to suggest that as a female reporter, she needed to use her sexuality. On July 30, 1996, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported the FBI investigation of Jewell as the potential bomber. And by the way, I will stand by every word and assertion in the script., Said Brenner, I was appalled by the reflexive snobberies and obliviousness of consequences that the AJC never addressed. The deputy attorney general called that morning, and said, essentially, Get that woman off the air. Movie Kathy not only sleeps with her source to get the Jewell scoop, but: Insults her fellow reporters Scruggs had discovered that Richard Jewell, the security guard who had evacuated the area before the bomb exploded, saving dozens of lives in the process, was a suspect in the attack. The most electric character in Clint Eastwoods new film, [Richard Jewell] (https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2019/12/richard-jewell-warner-bros-legal-letter)and now the most controversialis Kathy Scruggs, the hard-charging, real-life Atlanta Journal-Constitution journalist played by Olivia Wilde. Related: Eirianedd Munro (Adam Peaty Girlfriend) Bio, Age, Height, Family, Boyfriend, Son, Artist, Job, Net Worth. "She was such a good and dedicated journalist," Kiss said. Her father was a Gridiron Secret Society member at the University of Georgia and a pilot in the Army Air Corps during World War II. Richard Jewell is an Academy Awards nominated film directed and produced by Clint Eastwood. In 1996, after security guard Richard Jewell discovered a bomb at Atlanta's Centennial Olympic Park, helped clear the crowd and saved hundreds of lives, Jewell was declared a hero by the. He was given life in prison without parole. Here's our special offer. The AJCs reporter is reduced to a sex-trading object in the film, theletter says, according to the newspaper. ', there is no evidence that Scruggs slept with anyone. Its true we shouldnt boil the character to one sexual act (which, again, doesnt seem to have actually happened), but the film doesnt present much that would flesh out the picture. She would get upset when people were supposed to tell her something but wouldn't. The suit was dismissed in 2011 when the Georgia Court of Appeals concluded the articles in their entirety were substantially true at the time they were published. But Scruggs was not alive to see her name cleared, and friends told the AJC that stress related to the case exacerbated her failing health. Scruggs was born and raised in Atlanta. Carla Gugino as Kathy Scruggs in 'Manhunt: Deadly Games'. And this was after he had saved hundreds of lives. They launch a distraction campaign. We never made such a false & damning claim. Did kathy scruggs apologize to richard jewell Those who were either directly involved in the incident or were dragged into the subsequent FBI investigation are featured in the show. The film also takes liberties with how information and events unfolded. She is right now the face of justice. So I had to call the district attorney, and we went through this whole back and forth and Nancy didnt end up speaking about the Olympics again.. "The perspective of the fictional dramatization of the story, as I understood it, was that Kathy, and the FBI agent who leaked false information to her, were in a pre-existing romantic relationship, not a transactional exchange of sex for information," Wilde continued. In 2020, Manhunt: Deadly Gameswas released following the hunt for Eric Rudolph, who was the perpetrator of the Centennial Olympic Park bombing after suspicion initially fell on security guard Richard Jewell. Ashley Willcott is a former judge, trial lawyer, television anchor, and media consultant for lawyers child welfare influencer. It also started her downward spiral. I didnt want to back away from or soften [Scruggs], in any way, because I wanted to give people perhaps a chance of empathy, seeing a little bit of the world through her eyes, said Gugino. Her former colleagues said she didn't cross ethical boundaries to land a story,as is suggested in "Richard Jewell," the movie thatincludes a portrayal of her as a reporter at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. She liked white wine and Johnnie Walker Red, and she smoked "like a chimney," Kiss said. . Oh, well, its not like he received a lifetime appointment to the Supreme Court or anything. The Georgia Court of Appeals dismissed the Jewell case against the AJC in 2011. The New York Times wrote a 3,000-word cover story about his poor treatment after the FBI cleared him. Kathy Scruggs was an American reporter working for Atlanta Journal-Constitution (AJC). However, Jewell soon became a public villain when it was leaked that the FBI was investigating him (Jewell would quickly be cleared of all suspicion). That would be an appalling and misogynistic dismissal of the difficult work she did. Unfortunately, Scruggs can't come forward to defend herself, either: She died in 2001 at the age of 42from an overdose of prescription pain pills, according to Poytner. But she was a good reporter. How this story and source was gotten was never my interest., When Brenner read the rumor about Scruggs trading sex for stories in Alexander and Salwens book, she felt it was deeply problematic: Inevitably men get it wrong when they try to write about a womans sexuality., Both Brenner and Billy Ray, though, say the focus on Scruggs is a diversionary tactic. As Martz told the New York Times: [Kathy] could be flirtatious, but she wouldnt have done that sort of thing, because she was very conscious of her role as a reporter and she wanted to be known as a top-notch reporter. Jewell, a security guard at the park, helped to evacuate the area after the bomb was discovered. Her soul was gone. When Elisabeth Finch met Jennifer Beyer in 2019, the two women forged a fiercely loyal friendship, and eventually got married. ET. Wow, "Richard Jewell" depicts Kathy Scruggs a real Atlanta Journal Constitution reporter sleeping with an FBI agent to land a scoop about the '96 Olympic bombing. She was the daughter of Lewis Bubber Scruggs Sr. and Nancy Bentley Scruggs. She had a very close relationship with the cops and the FBI helping to tell their story, and yes, by all accounts she had relationships with different people in that field, Wilde told Deadline. MANHUNT: DEADLY GAMES Official Trailer (HD) Cameron Britton, MANHUNT: DEADLY GAMES 2020 TRUE CRIME DRAMA CAMERON BRITTON MANHUNT: DEADLY GAMES will chronicle one of the largest and most complex manhunts on U.S. soil the search for the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Park Bomber and the media firestorm that consumed the life of Richard Jewell in its wake. Kathy Scruggs herself wrote follow-up stories about Jewell's shabby treatment and interviewed criminal profilers about how criminal profiling had been mishandled in the Jewell case. While the movie portrays an FBI case agent leaking Jewell's name to Atlanta Constitution reporter Kathy Scruggs, who has since died, there is no basis for the claim. The film flashes six years later and Bryant informs Richard Jewell that the FBI has finally got the real bomber: Eric Rudolph. (This post will contain both spoilers for the movie Richard Jewell and historical facts. It might be a valuable discussion to have, whether Scruggs, Martz, and the AJC erred in running with the Jewell-as-prime-suspect story, even if it was well-sourced, true, and okayed before publication. Clint Eastwood slanders reporter Kathy Scruggs in "Richard Jewell," his otherwise powerful and honest film. "She would announce herself. Olivia Wilde as Atlanta Journal-Constitution reporter Kathy Scruggs in the movie "Richard Jewell." Warner Bros. "I am Kathy Scruggs' brother and only remaining member of our immediate family. Im thinking D-cups, movie-Scruggs growls, cupping her breasts for effect. Jewell was the security guard who spotted an unattended bag containing a pipe bomb in Centennial Park in the early hours of July 27, 1996. We understand why she was trying to make it in her world, and I think shes a pretty three-dimensional character.. (Ed: note: The sources name, according to The Suspect, was Don Johnson. It crushed her like a junebug on the sidewalk., But even facing litigation over the article, Scruggs would not reveal her source in reporting that Jewell was a suspect. In addition to suffering from depression, she had a chronic back problem. Who is Craig Herrera? 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Burns her source, breaking her promise to be off the record and jeopardizing an ongoing investigation. She became popular in the 1990s for breaking the story that the FBI was investigating security guard Richard Jewell as a possible suspect in the 1996 Atlanta Summer Olympics bombing. It was the early 1980s when Scruggs arrived in Anderson to be an education reporter. Heres how it works. It was heart-wrenching for Richard, Alexanders co-author, Kevin Salwen adds. The second season of "Manhunt: Deadly Games'' takes on the saga of Eric Rudolph and Richard Jewell. We did not.. Scruggs died of "acute morphine toxicity," Kiss said, and he believes the stress of the Jewell story and the related litigation contributed to her death. "That story might not win anyone an Oscar, but it is the truth under the evidence," Wood wrote. Clint Eastwoods film is based on the Vanity Fair profile piece (linked earlier) American Nightmare: The Ballad of Richard Jewell and the book The Suspect: An Olympic Bombing, the FBI, the Media, and Richard Jewell, the Man Caught in the Middle. "The court found that what Kathy reported was true at the time she reported it," Kiss said. Cinemablend is part of Future US Inc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. After the bombing fiasco, Jewell went on to get married, realized his dream of becoming a cop (The Suspect details a later incident in which Jewell performed CPR on a dying infant, saving its life), and bought a 26-acre farm in rural Georgia. But several friends and colleagues have said over the years that she never really recovered from what happened with Jewell. The FBIs theory was that Jewell left these bombs so that he could be the one to find them and gain hero status. Carla Gugino plays her in Manhunt: Deadly Games on CBS. She and Martz had been held in contempt for refusing to reveal their source. I probably will wind up watching it. The reporters outside his home would even yell and harass Bobi and Richard to try to get a reaction to catch on film. In a thread on Twitter on Thursday night, Lin Wood, the prominent defamation lawyer who represented Jewell in lawsuits against The Journal-Constitution and other media organizations, joined the movie's critics. If they had, it might have ruined their idea of what they wanted the story to be. After Jewell was cleared, the media blamed her for making it public that Jewell was a suspect. 6+ Thoughts I Had Watching When Harry Met Sally For The First Time, How Wolf Entertainment's New Cop Drama Will Be Fundamentally Different From Chicago P.D. He is serving multiple life sentences for his role in several bombings. This led to him being scrutinized and ridiculed by the media before he was cleared as a suspect. Why should Kathy Scruggs get named and shamed while the FBI agent who revealed the suspects name receives anonymity? Despite the fact that he was never charged, Jewell was subjected to a trial by media, which had a negative impact on both his personal and professional life. According to the Vanity Fair article, Jewells phone number was leaked online and he received thousands of calls a day from people threatening him. On the park grounds, he discovered a backpack containing three pipe bombs and assisted in evacuating the area before the bomb exploded, saving many people from injury or death. Her own brother said of her, I loved Kathy, but she was crazy.. Please consider becominga subscriber. The (Journal-Constitution's) claims are baseless and we will vigorously defend . She did her job as it was then understood. Richard Jewell ended with a quiet showdown between Jewell (played by Paul Walter Hauser) and Watson Bryant (Sam Rockwell), and the FBI agents in charge of his case, led by Tom Shaw (Jon Hamm). An AJC piece by Jennifer Brett quotes Scruggs brother, and her co-author of the original piece identifying Jewell Ron Martz criticizing the filmmakers for never seeking their perspectives. Wood went on to write that evidence showed Scruggs was dating an Atlanta police officer at the time of the investigation and that the newspaper independently confirmed with the FBI that Jewell was a leading suspect before publication. Could never apologize or admit she got it wrong, and put someone through utter hell for it "It's obvious to me they did not go to any great lengths to find out what the real characters were like. And she could be loud and brash if the mood struck her. While researching his first novel, Atlanta Heat, Coram spent several days a week for a few years at Manuels Tavernthe homicide cop hangout where Scruggs would sidle up to cops over liquid lunches and happy hours in hopes of coaxing out new information. Scruggs isnt alive to defend herself, but Richard Jewells depiction of her had Scruggs colleagues at the AJC calling foul before theyd even seen the film. That FBI agent is identified by name in The Suspect, but, tellingly, not in the movie* (book spoilers in the footnote). Initially hailed as a hero by the media, Jewell was quickly identified as a suspect by the FBI and local law enforcement based on psychological profiling. Get all your true crime news from Oxygen. In addition to the park, he bombed a gay nightclub and abortion clinics. She was just 42 when she died in 2001. Rolling Stones film critic Peter Travers wrote in his review, The attempt to slut-shame a reporter whos not around to defend herself stands as a black mark in a film that otherwise hews close to the proven facts of the case." Who is Ashley Willcott? The thing she was always proud of was the newspaper stood by her. This was his reason for the Olympics bombing: The purpose of the attack on July 27th was to confound, anger and embarrass the Washington government in the eyes of the world for its abominable sanctioning of abortion on demand. Richard Jewell is one of the great movies currently available to stream on HBO Max. Photo: Lionsgate. It was just hard living, her brother toldthe AJC. Whereas Scruggs important job, local police reporter, is increasingly an anachronism, we still seem to have plenty of Brokaws, Kindreds, and Graces to go around (admittedly fewer Hollis Gillespies). The book describes Scruggs as the kind of woman who packed perfume and a pistol in her purse, wore leather miniskirts and fishnet tights to the office, and kept her blouse unbuttoned beyond what some might feel was workplace-appropriate. All rights reserved. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution then read the full text of the story to an FBI spokesperson before publication specifically to avoid jeopardizing the investigation. Shes flawed, and really complex, and really interesting. Even as a kid Jewell seemed driven by. Please proceed accordingly). Shewas young and driven, according to those who knew her. When she went after a story she did what was necessary to get the story, within legal and ethical bounds., Her friend Susan Parke called her luminous, adding she was so, so alive. However, there are two major things that the movie portrays in questionable ways. NBC even featured him on an SNL skit to joke about the incident. Stream it here (opens in new tab). We dont do that to men, we dont do that to James Bond we dont say James Bond isnt a real spy because he gets his information sometimes by sleeping with women as sources. In the film, Atlanta-Journal Constitution reporter Scruggs, played by Olivia Wilde, is depicted as offering sex in exchangefor information about the case from an FBI agent, NBC News reports. Richard Jewell was never officially charged with any crimes, but he spent 88 days being under investigation as the person responsible for the 1996 bombs in Centennial Park. In 2017, the series Manhunt was released depicting the FBIs hunt for the Unabomber. In the end, Kathy Scruggs greatest crime was being interesting. Richard Jewell, a security guard, also discovered the explosives. 'Manhunt Deadly Games,' an American true-crime drama, will premiere its second season in the year 2020. It was in 1998, and he then spent over five years on the run living and surviving in the wilderness. Its like, well, the names out there. But she was always agood reporter with a tremendous work ethic, said Gouch and Kiss. Warner Brothers has fired back at the AJC, saying that having been a part of the rush to judgment of Richard Jewell, [the AJC] is now trying to malign our filmmakers and cast., Olivia Wilde, who plays Scruggs in the film, defended the films depiction of her character on feminist grounds, saying the films critics were holding it to a sexist double standard., She was incredibly successful as a cop reporter. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Kathy Scruggs, who was a very accomplished and very aggressive police reporter, had a motto: Im not in the business of being last. And she decided that she was going to be her usual aggressive self and made call after call to law enforcement sources. In a new depiction of the 1996 Olympics bombing in Atlanta and its aftermath, a newspaper reporter from the time is once again portrayed in a controversial light. He received a public apology from Jay Leno, a $200,000 settlement from CNN, and an almost $600,000 settlement from NBC, among others. Should they have known what the unprecedented 24-hour news cycle would do with Jewell? 111 people were still injured, and two people died: Alice Hawthorne and Melih Uzunyol, a Turkish cameraman who had a heart attack while trying to cover the event. She was never at peace or at rest with this story, said Scruggss former co-worker Tony Kiss. In January 2002, Craig was issued an American Meteorological Society Broadcast Seal of Approval, Indoor Cycling Instructor AFAA. Kathy did not personally apologize to Richard Jewell, However, the story haunted her until her death. Referring to the newspaper by its commonly used nickname, Wood wrote: "I handled Richard Jewell's case against AJC for 16 years. One wonders if it was because none of them were attractive, foul-mouthed women who wore fishnets and miniskirts. In an interview with Collider, Gugino acknowledged that Scruggs was known for partying hard, but she was also known as a great reporter and what intrigued Gugino about the part was the notion that everything can look a certain way, depending on the point of view youre looking at it from, and that we all have a sense of what our truth is and it might be very different than somebody elses., Gugino went on to say that the scoop about Jewell basically fell in her lap and Scruggs was pressured to do it quickly, otherwise somebody else was gonna run the story, which is the nature of that profession, and she ended up in very deep.. Jewell becomes emotional about regaining his freedom. In December 2019, a biographical drama film Richard Jewel was released portraying the real life of Jewell. It feels unfair that Kathy has been minimized in this way. [] Its a misunderstanding of feminism to assume that all women have to be sexless.. Kathy Scruggs was the Atlanta Journal-Constitution newspaper reporter whose reporting on the Atlanta Olympics bombing has been extremely controversial. And two, that it was accurate, said Alexander. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. In Eastwood's highly-anticipated film, "Richard Jewell," reporter Kathy Scruggs is depicted as trading sex for stories and information. Centennial Olympic Park bombings are depicted in a film. If you wanted to draw a Hollywood stereotype of a hard-charging female cops reporter, Kathy would fit that bill pretty well, King said during a phone call with Vanity Fair on Wednesday. According to The Washington Post, Jewell stated that the lawsuits werent about the money --because most of it went to lawyer fees, taxes, and a new home for his mother-- but to ensure that the truth was told. Specifically, Riley has pointed to a scene in Richard Jewell that implies Scruggs, who died in 2001, traded sex for storiesa scene that has incited an internet firestorm and prompted the AJC to demand a disclaimer on the movie. Yes, Jewell deserves to be better remembered as a hero, but the movie only does a middling job of helping that case, presenting Jewell largely as a sad sack defined by his victimhood rather than a lovable good ol boy who showed up to his interrogation in a stars-and-stripes fanny pack, loved karaoke, and sang Free Bird in a cover band. After 88 days of public scrutiny, he was cleared as a suspect. The Complete Guide to All the Ways Donald Trump Is Legally Screwed. Reporter Kathy Scruggs broke the story that the FBI was looking at Richard Jewell as the Atlanta Olympics bomber. Early buzz for Clint Eastwoods latest film indicates that both Paul Walter Hauser and Sam Rockwell have a fighting chance. Eric Rudolph, an American domestic terrorist, was later found to have been responsible for setting off the bomb, which killed one person and injured 111 other people at the Summer Olympic Games in Atlanta in July 1996. Wilde seems to infer that Richard Jewells critics are basing their criticisms of the Kathy Scruggs character solely on the idea that the movie infers that Scruggs had sex with a source for a story (true, the film doesnt show the actual penis going in, but when two people say theyre going to have sex and leave for a hotel room its not much of a leap to assume that they did). Kathy Scruggs was the colorful and controversial Atlanta Journal-Constitution news reporter who broke the story that the FBI was investigating hero security guard Richard Jewell in the 1996 . Author Robert Coram had a front-row seat to Scruggss dealings with law enforcement in the mid '90s. Richard Jewell was under FBI scrutiny for about three months before he was cleared. Manhunt: Deadly Games airs Mondays at 10 p.m. ET/PT on CBS. She hosts the live coverage of Court TV, which airs on weekdays from 3 to 6 p.m.
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