Andy Cohen cleared of misconduct claims after Bravo investigation
The presenter was accused of sexual harassment by a ‘Real Housewives’ star
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Your support makes all the difference.Andy Cohen has been cleared of misconduct claims following a Bravo investigation into allegations made against him by two former Real Housewives stars, Bradi Glanville and Leah McSweeney.
In a letter sent by her lawyer to Bravo’s parent company NBCUniversal, Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star Glanville claimed Cohen had sent her an inappropriate video message in 2022 stating “his intention to sleep with another Bravo star that night while thinking of her and invited her to watch via Facetime”.
Meanwhile, Real Housewives of New York star McSweeney alleged Cohen had a “proclivity” for cocaine usage and “tends to provide Housewives with whom he uses cocaine with more favourable treatment and edits.”
In a statement released to Entertainment Weekly on Thursday (9 May), Bravo executives announced their external investigation had found claims against Cohen to be “unsubstantiated”.
“The outside investigation into the recent allegations made by Brandi Glanville and Leah McSweeney against Andy Cohen has now been completed,” it read. “The claims were found to be unsubstantiated.”
Back in February, hours after Glanville’s letter went public, Cohen responded in a statement on Twitter where he claimed the Real Housewives star had been “in on the joke”.
“The video shows [Below Deck’s] Kate Chastain and I very clearly joking to Brandi. It was absolutely meant in jest, and Brandi’s response clearly communicated she was in on the joke,” he wrote.
“That said, it was totally inappropriate and I apologise.”
Glanville’s legal team then responded to Cohen’s statement in a letter shared with The Daily Beast.
“Why is Andy Cohen getting a pass? Any other supervisor at Comcast who did that would be fired on the spot especially if the excuse was that this was a joke,” they said.
“If it was such a known joke then why did he apologise? Because he knows he is in a position of power to control where and how much she works so he can do what he wants and behave in a fashion that is abusive and harassing.”
Comparing the situation to former NBC news anchor Matt Lauer, who was fired in 2017 over sexual harassment claims, the statement added: “Has NBC learned nothing from the cover up at NBC News? Here we go again with the protection of those in power. Does Andy Cohen make too much money for Bravo to fire?
“That is the message Comcast is sending. Mr Roberts [Comcast CEO Brian L Roberts], it’s time to step in and do the right thing. The only thing worse than his excuse is saying it’s okay because he thought it was a joke.”
The Independent has contacted NBCUniversal and Cohen’s representative for comment.
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