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Les Moonves, the CEO and chairman of CBS, allegedly sought to ruin the career ofJanet Jacksonfollowing her now-infamous “wardrobe malfunction” at the 2004 Super Bowl halftime show, which aired on the network,according to a new report from the Huffington Post.
During the Super Bowl halftime show on Feb. 1 of that year,Justin Timberlakeripped off a piece of Jackson’s bustier onstage and her breast was exposed on live television for roughly half a second.
The network declined to comment to PEOPLE on the Huffington Post report. Neither Jackson’s reps nor Timberlake’s reps immediately responded to PEOPLE’s request for comment. The Recording Academy also did not immediately return a request for comment.
Despite Jackson, 52, and Timberlake, 37, both asserting that only a piece of red lace was supposed to be revealed, sources told the Huffington Post that Moonves allegedly believed the pair wanted to strike up controversy, and in response he reportedly banned them both from the Grammys, which would air on CBS the next week. But Timberlake ended up attending and performing allegedly because he cried as he apologized to Moonves, sources told the outlet.
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Meanwhile, since 2004, Timberlake’s solo career has been hugely successful. He even, again, performed on the Super Bowl stage (alone) in 2018.
A source told Huffington Post that Moonves reportedly said, “How the f— did she slip through?” after finding out about Jackson’s book deal.
In an investigative report from Ronan Farrow inThe New Yorkerpublished in late July, six women — including actress Illeana Douglas and writer Janet Jones — who professionally dealt with Moonves between the 1980s and late aughts accused him of sexual misconduct.
“Six women who had professional dealings with him told me that … Moonves sexually harassed them. Four described forcible touching or kissing during business meetings, in what they said appeared to be a practiced routine. Two told me that Moonves physically intimidated them or threatened to derail their careers,” Farrow wrote. “All said that he became cold or hostile after they rejected his advances, and that they believed their careers suffered as a result.”
In a previous statement toThe New Yorker, Moonves admitted to acting inappropriately in the past.
source: people.com
