NPR chief hit with sexual assault allegations

The head of news for National Public Radio — a former New York Times bureau chief — has been accused of sexually assaulting two women seeking jobs from him nearly 20 years ago, a report said Tuesday.

NPR is now investigating the claims, which involve its senior vice president of news, Michael Oreskes, suddenly breaking off from the women’s interviews to French-kiss them, the Washington Post said.

The women were both journalists at the time and provided similar stories, the Post said. They spoke on condition of anonymity, the paper said.

The women said Oreskes was Washington bureau chief for the Times, and they had gone to speak to him about working for the paper when he suddenly pounced. The incidents occurred in the late 1990s, the women said.

Oreskes, who also formerly worked for the Associated Press, joined NPR in 2015.

The women contacted an NPR lawyer about their stories in mid-October, the Post said, just after the sex abuse and rape allegations against movie producer Harvey Weinstein surfaced.

The NPR lawyer sent the women emails saying the news organization was investigating the matter, the paper said.

NPR issued a statement to The Post saying, “We take these kinds of allegations very seriously. If a concern is raised, we review the matter promptly and take appropriate steps as warranted to assure a safe, comfortable and productive work environment. As a matter of policy, we do not comment about personnel matters.”

Oreskes did not respond to the paper’s requests for comment.