A Failure of the Network News Star System And, of course, there are the 10 women who have leveled accusations against Mr. Trump — who boasted of using his own star power to make surprise sexual advances on women in a “hot-mic” moment captured during a 2005 appearance on “Access Hollywood.” In op-ed pages and on cable news, progressive commentators are questioning why television personalities, news executives and Hollywood heavyweights are losing their jobs while the politicians facing accusations — a list that also includes the Democrats Al Franken and John Conyers Jr. — remain gainfully employed. Journalists and news executives, on the other hand, must answer to their audiences — which overwhelmingly comprise women for the morning shows hosted by Mr. Lauer and Mr. Rose. One by one, they have fallen to a range of allegations of sexual misconduct against them — the latest coming against Mr. Lauer and Mr. Keillor on Wednesday. Mr. Lauer and Mr. O’Reilly each made more than $20 million. These media luminaries were just right for the archetypal parts they inhabited for so many years — roles that not only made them big names in broadcasting but also took them to the forefront of the national political discussion. Mr. Trump wrote that tweet not long after offering his support for Roy Moore, the Republican Senate candidate in Alabama. Matt Lauer, of NBC News, played the easygoing dad you could rely on — fun-loving but serious enough when he had to be.
