Ronan Farrow cuts ties with publisher Hachette after its acquisition of Woody Allen’s memoir

Journalist and author the bestselling Catch and Kill Ronan Farrow said in a tweet that he was cutting ties with his publisher Hachette Book Group, after it’s imprint Grand Central announced that it would be publishing Woody Allen’s memoir Apropos of Nothing. Farrow is Allen’s son with Mia Farrow. [caption id=“attachment_8115921” align=“alignnone” width=“825”]  Photos from Facebook.[/caption] Almost three decades ago, Farrow’s adopted sister Dylan Farrow had accused Allen of molesting her as a child, which the director denied. The memoir, Farrow claims, has not been fact-checked and his sister Dylan “has never been contacted to respond to any denial or mischaracterisation of the abuse she suffered at the hand of Woody Allen.”

Hey, just wanted to share my thoughts on some recent news: pic.twitter.com/ovPczgx8pB

— Ronan Farrow (@RonanFarrow) March 4, 2020

Farrow, who as a journalist has reported on the sexual assault accusations against Harvey Weinstein and others, and written Catch and Kill about the challenges of reporting about the #MeToo movement, referred to Hachette’s decision as a show of “lack of ethics and compassion for victims of sexual abuse,” and said he cannot in “good conscience” continue working with such a publisher. “Your policy of editorial independence among your imprints does not relieve you of your moral and professional obligations as the publisher of Catch and Kill, and as the leader of a company being asked to assist in efforts by abusive men to whitewash their crimes,” Farrow wrote in an email to Hachette chief executive Michael Pietsch. Pietsch defended the publishers’ decision, saying that different imprints do not intervene with each-others’ editorial policies. “Grand Central publishing believes strongly that there’s a large audience that wants to hear the story of Woody Allen’s life as told by Woody Allen himself. That’s what they’ve chosen to publish," he said. Before Hachette picked it up, Allen’s memoir faced rejection by several other major publishers.