After Harassment Scandal, What Happens To Mark Halperin’s Reporting?

Mark Halperin returned from disgrace, saying that he would only answer to people who are ‘perfect’ Image by Getty

By Josh Nathan-Kazis January 2, 2018

Reporters Mark Halperin and John Heilemann, authors of the best-selling campaign books “Game Change” and “Double Down,” were granted heavy-duty access to the Trump campaign for their upcoming book and HBO movie about the 2016 presidential election, Axios reported on Sunday.

“You guys all need to talk to him,” Trump told his inner circle at a dinner early last year, Axios reported.

But following allegations of sexual harassment against Halperin by at least a dozen women, the HBO deal is off and the future of the book is uncertain. Now it’s not clear whether the reporting, which Axios asserts amounts to “the most comprehensive insider account of what happened on the campaign,” will see the light of day.

It’s as yet undecided whether Heilemann will complete the book on his own, according to Axios.

The two journalists told The New York Times last March that the project would focus on “Trump the man,” among other things.

“I think the key is, Trump is a figure of enormous fascination for people the world over,” Heilemann saidat the time. “The one thing we’re not worried about right now is that people will be bored by Donald Trump.”

Contact Josh Nathan-Kazis at [email protected] or on Twitter, @joshnathankazis.

Josh Nathan-Kazis is a staff writer for the Forward. He covers charities and politics, and writes investigations and longform.

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