New York Times Journalist Fesses Up About Calling the First Lady a ‘Hooker’

After swimsuit model Emily Ratajkowski sparked outrage by taking to Twitter to blast an unnamed New York Times journalist who had referred to the First Lady as a “hooker,” a feature writer at the newspaper has stepped forward and apologized.

On Monday, the 25-year-old model tweeted about the conversation that she was engaged in during New York’s Fashion Week.

— Emily Ratajkowski (@emrata) February 13, 2017

“Sat next to a journalist from the NYT last night who told me ‘Melania is a hooker.’ Whatever your politics it's crucial to call this out for what it is: slut shaming,” Ratajkowski tweeted.“I don't care about her nudes or sexual history and no one should.”

— Emily Ratajkowski (@emrata) February 13, 2017

While she did not identify the journalist, she did later specify that they are male.

“Gender specific attacks are disgusting sexist bullshit,” Ratajkowski said in a subsequent tweet.

On Tuesday afternoon, New York Times features writer and documentary filmmaker Jacob Bernstein confessed that he had been the one gossiping about the First Lady.

In a four-part series of tweets, he apologized for his comments.

— Jacob Bernstein (@BernsteinJacob) February 14, 2017

“I want to take ownership of a mistake I made,” Bernstein began. “Speaking at a party in what I thought was a personal conversation, I nevertheless made a stupid remark about the first lady. My editors have made it clear my behavior was not in keeping with the standards of the Times, and I agree.”

“My mistake, referring to unfounded rumors, shouldn’t reflect on anyone else and I apologize profusely,” he continued.

Ratajkowski is known perhaps as much for her political stances, particularly concerning feminism, as she is for her modeling. The outspoken Bernie Sanders supporter has long maintained that women can be both intelligent and sexual — if and when they choose.

During the campaign, unsubstantiated reports swirled that Melania Trump was an escort prior to meeting her husband. She has since filed defamation lawsuits against the Daily Mail and a smaller blog site — as well as issued letters demanding a retraction to several others.