Podcast Summary: Infamous

Episode: Encore: The OTHER Harvey Weinstein Scandal

Air Date: January 29, 2026
Hosts/Reporters: Vanessa Grigoriadis, Gabriel Sherman, Natalie Robehmed
Guest: Andrew Goldman

Overview

In this riveting encore episode, "The OTHER Harvey Weinstein Scandal," Infamous explores a lesser-known but deeply illuminating altercation between journalist Andrew Goldman and Harvey Weinstein, years before the major criminal revelations about Weinstein became public. Through candid conversation and first-person recollections, Vanessa Grigoriadis and Andrew Goldman unpack a night that revealed the immense, unchecked power Weinstein held in New York’s media and cultural worlds—and how the story of his public violence was systematically buried.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Setting the Stage: The New York Observer & Media Culture

• Andrew Goldman’s Role at the Observer

  • He describes the Observer as "full of attitude...go out and make some noise and to be funny and to be snarky." (02:33)
  • His work involved party coverage, society gossip, rubbing shoulders with "rich and famous people."
  • Vanessa and Andrew swap war stories from their reporter days:
    • Vanessa: “I had two gowns that I had to wear in order to go to the Rockefeller estate...” (03:00)
    • Andrew: Tells of the shared, stinky tuxedo for Observer reporters: “you'd find, like, you know, a crudite in the pocket." (03:27)

• The Social Set

  • Andrew recalls finding himself at a dinner squeezed between infamous figures: "between Imelda Marcos and Leona Helmsley...I was like. Basically immediately had this flop sweat..." (04:15)
  • “One of them is the Harvey Weinstein story. Another one would have been My Dinner with the Queen of Mean and the Queen of Shoes.” (05:11)

2. The Lead-Up: Reporting on Harvey Weinstein and Miramax

• Rebecca Traister’s Investigation
  • Rebecca Traister, a young reporter (and girlfriend of Andrew at the time), was attempting to get comment from Weinstein/Miramax about the controversial non-release of the teen violence movie O.
  • Miramax (led by Harvey Weinstein) had a reputation for infuriating filmmakers by re-editing and shelving movies, earning Harvey the nickname "Harvey Scissorhands."
  • The alleged reason for shelving O: Weinstein feared it would upset Vice Presidential candidate Joe Lieberman (a critic of violence in media), damaging Harvey’s hope for political rewards.
    • “Harvey...legitimately felt like his work was going to make him ambassador to Israel.” (07:12)

3. The Party: The Confrontation with Harvey Weinstein

• The Confrontation Begins

  • Rebecca and Andrew attend a Weinstein-hosted party at the Tribeca Grand Hotel, intent on getting answers about O.
  • At the bar and beyond:
    • Andrew: “I remember going up to the bar and ordering a vodka on the rocks. And then I watched Rebecca go up and approach Harvey with her little tape recorder...” (11:42)
    • Harvey erupts: “‘Who let this fucking cunt into this party? Who let this fucking cunt into this party?’” (12:11)
      • "This is a cancer party. And this is the shit that she's asking about." (12:23)
  • Andrew is Compelled to Intervene
    • Feeling responsible, Andrew steps in:
      • Andrew: “I said, Harvey. And I introduced myself and I said, I invited her to this party...And I tried to deescalate...” (12:44)
  • Harvey’s Threats and Infamous Quote:
    • Harvey: “‘I'm gonna kick your fucking ass. ... I'm glad I'm the fucking sheriff of this shit ass fucking town.’” (13:14)
      • Andrew, recognizing this as "the money quote," checks his recorder just as Weinstein notices too—then lunges to seize it.

• Physical Altercation

  • “He lunged for my tape recorder...There was this match between the two of us. And...he grabs me by the head and dragged me by the head out of the party...in front of the Tribeca Grand Hotel, Harvey Weinstein holding me in a headlock.” (16:05)
  • Surreal detail: “I seemed to remember being in a headlock...so long that I was able from my pocket to fish out a card, which I handed to the Daily News photographer just so he could identify me.” (17:27)

4. Media Blackout & The Culture of Silence

• No Coverage, No Photos

  • Despite a room packed with reporters, there’s no coverage in the Daily News, New York Post, or anywhere else.
  • Explanation: “Harvey was very good actually at offering deals...He would throw money around to neutralize local press...Most of the press in the room that night had either already been neutralized or...the photographer...if I had to guess, is in his retirement spending money that he made from Harvey Weinstein to buy all those photos that night. ... None of those photos [emerged].” (19:55)
  • Andrew later hears the embarrassing photos are locked away at Miramax.

• Andrew’s Account Blocked at the Observer

  • Andrew and Rebecca expected to publish:
    • “I assumed that it was going to be a story in the New York Observer.” (21:33)
    • But Observer editor Peter Kaplan refuses. Hypothesis: “Peter probably thought from knowing me a little bit that maybe I'd done something to start a fight with [Harvey], which wasn't the case...Peter thought Harvey was like a Louis B. [Mayer]-style giant...an ‘immovable object’...” (22:53)
  • Silence directive: “I was given the directive not to speak to media about it.” (24:20)
  • Miramax attempts to recast the incident as Andrew being the aggressor; only a police report sets the record straight (“I was attacked last night by Harvey Weinstein.”) (25:10)

5. Reflections on Power, Media, and Consequences

• The Lesson About Power

  • "What I didn't realize was the raw power that he wielded trumped any of the news interest that anybody would actually have in the real story..." (25:42)
  • Even after filing a police report against Weinstein, nothing happens: “Police don’t do anything. Absolutely nothing happened.” (26:24)
  • The incident is formative for Andrew: “My eyes were opened to how power actually works in this town. I became much more cynical. That cynicism has remained with me.” (26:52)

• Pervasive Culture of Silence

  • Harvey’s power not just over studios and films, but over individual journalists and the entire media ecosystem.
  • “Harvey Weinstein was absolutely the sheriff of that shit ass fucking town.” (28:01)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Weinstein’s Outburst:

  • Harvey: “Who let this fucking cunt into this party? This is a cancer party. And this is the shit that she's asking about.” (12:11–12:23)

• On Weinstein’s Bravado:

  • Harvey: “I’m glad I’m the fucking sheriff of this shit ass fucking town.” (13:14)

• On the Physical Altercation:

  • Andrew: “I was in a headlock in front of the Tribeca Grand Hotel...I seem to remember being unable to move, unable to free myself.” (16:24)

• On Power and Media Silence:

  • Andrew: “What I didn't realize was the raw power that he wielded trumped any of the news interest...he had enough money to spread around...well positioned enough to bury it.” (25:42)

• On Cynicism and Speaking Truth:

  • Andrew: “That cynicism has remained with me...this might have been the beginning of me trying to, through interviewing, speak truth to power.” (26:52)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Andrew’s Observer background, scene-setting: 02:27–05:22
• The Miramax/O reporting saga: 06:07–08:45
• Entering Weinstein’s party, confrontation erupts: 11:42–13:14
• Weinstein’s infamous “sheriff” line, physical altercation: 13:14–16:28
• The headlock, the missing photos: 16:24–19:38
• Aftermath—no media coverage, power’s protection: 19:38–22:50
• The Observer’s refusal to publish, Andrew’s police report: 21:33–25:33
• Conclusions about power, cynicism, and the media: 25:42–28:01

Tone and Style

The episode’s tone is sharp, self-aware, and darkly humorous, grounded in a spirit of journalistic candor. The conversation retains a sense of disbelief at both the audacity of Weinstein and the complicity of New York media, while also carrying the sadness and cynicism of hindsight. The hosts and Andrew Goldman trade banter even as they discuss violent threats and physical assault, connecting the incident not only to Weinstein’s notorious behavior but to the broader mechanisms that allow abuse to go unchecked.

Summary prepared for listeners who want the depth, substance, and major takeaways of the episode, without requiring a listen.