The Harvey Weinstein scandal does feel like a fundamental shift in how we talk about harassment, abuse and assault within the entertainment industry. What’s interesting is that the conversation is being extended in some interesting ways, so it’s not simply about a predatory Hollywood producer raping, harassing and abusing actresses, it’s about the larger culture of abuse across many industries. Many in the fashion industry have been wanting to have this conversation too, because in fashion and modeling, the women and men being preyed upon are often younger and just as likely to “stay silent” about abuse out of fear that they will ruin their careers if they speak out about a photographer or stylist or makeup artist or ad executive.

Women’s Wear Daily interviewed four ad executives – all men – to see if they thought abuse, harassment and assault happened within their industry. The amount of see-no-evil, hear-no-evil from these dudes is… the reason why the conversation is so vital. And it’s fascinating to see two different executives bring up Terry Richardson out of nowhere. Richardson is a known pervert and a photographer who has been accused of abusing, assaulting and harassing young models. But these ad guys have worked with him, sure, and they’ve heard the “rumors” but still, they’ve never seen anything, okay? You can read read the full piece here. Some highlights:

This guy can’t speak to rumors: Ad honcho David Lipman said sexual harassment never occurred on his set. As a father and husband, he said he’s very aware of the environment he’s creating on a set. “My sets have always been full of life, fun, exaggeration, crazy, lunacy and creativity, but never adultery or harassment or anything like that that I was aware of. Even in those crazy days, I don’t remember a girl getting abused. There were crazy moments of laughter and kookiness, but nothing I can remember on a set that I know of that ever happened. I know of stories, sure, I’ve heard the stories. I’m in the business so we hear the stories,” he said. Asked if there were any photographers who are known for more sexually charged environments, he said, “There are the rumors, but I can’t speak to the rumors.”

Terry Richardson didn’t abuse anyone in front of me: Lipman recalled going to St. Barths with Peter Lindbergh and shooting Amber Valletta for the first time for David Yurman. “We were so joyous and celebratory, and I don’t think anything happened and we were worried about one thing — do great pictures,” Lipman said. “We did crazy antics to get crazy pictures, but never abused anybody. I’ve worked with so many photographers. I worked with Terry Richardson. Terry never abused anybody when I worked with him. And we laughed, but he never abused anybody,” he insisted. “I wish I could give you a scandalous story, but it didn’t exist,” he said.

Dude #2 has never seen anything: Charles DeCaro, co-creative director of Laspata DeCaro, a New York-based ad agency, whose founding partners do the photography and styling, said about sexual harassment: “It doesn’t exist on my set. We’ve made this very sheltered existence. That dynamic is not prevalent on our sets whatsoever.” He also has heard stories about harassment that has taken place on fashion shoots or on the runway. “It doesn’t have to be sexual harassment, it’s just harassment, period. It’s the fact that someone has to fit into this stereotypical string-bean, swizzle-stick vision of a stylist is just so bad,” said DeCaro, adding that it’s gotten worse. “We get samples from designers, and who can fit into this?” he said. “Fortunately, we work with girls who are healthy, they eat and they take care of themselves and are very health-conscious. By and large, it’s a little frightening when you hear what happens at the runway shows and what happens on other sets.”

Dude #3 witnessed Terry Richardson doing something, but it’s fine: Neil Kraft, owner and creative director at KraftWorks, said, “I think sexual harassment exists in every business that remotely touches pretty women and men. It’s out there. I’ve only witnessed really bad things once in 25 years. The difference between my kind of thing and a runway model is we travel with the models. We go to Hawaii and travel all over the world.” He said that during one of his campaign shoots, he walked in on Terry Richardson having sex with a girl in a bathroom. “I don’t know what the relationship was,” Kraft said. “It was during the day and he came back to work a half-hour later. It’s fairly well-known that the models tend to sleep with the assistants. That’s more youthful attraction. Herb Ritts was known to use his boyfriends as models. They were guys he was attracted to,” he alleged.

[From Women’s Wear Daily]

It’s SO INTERESTING that two different ad execs specifically name-checked Terry Richardson, isn’t it? But it’s even more interesting that this WWD seems to perfectly encapsulate the mindset of the “boys club” that these ad executives inhabit. A similar boys’ club existed in Hollywood – most men knew that Harvey Weinstein was a rampant womanizer, a dog who was constantly pursuing women. Many of them had heard “the rumors” but hey, they didn’t see anything so he must be a good guy, right? Also: after several of Terry Richardson’s victims have come forward to be named as his victims, I don’t think anyone should refer to the accusations against Richardson as merely “rumors.” They aren’t rumors. They are accusations, allegations and victim testimony.

Photos courtesy of WENN.