The Tara Palmeri Show

Episode: Epstein Whistleblower Speaks Out About Flight Log Leak
Host: Tara Palmeri
Guest: Nick Bryant (Investigative Journalist, Founder of Epstein Justice)
Date: October 6, 2025

Episode Overview

This episode features an in-depth interview with Nick Bryant, the investigative journalist who first published Jeffrey Epstein’s "little black book" and flight logs. Host Tara Palmeri and Bryant examine the difficulties of exposing Epstein’s network, media reluctance, government cover-ups, and Bryant’s ongoing activism seeking justice for survivors through the nonprofit Epstein Justice. The conversation delves into why the files remain secret, the tangled legal landscape, and systemic failures that enabled Epstein and shield his accomplices.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Obtaining and Publishing the Black Book & Flight Logs

• Origin Story:
  • Bryant explains how he acquired Epstein's black book and flight logs from victims’ attorneys after years investigating similar abuse networks.
  • Quote: “I got the flight logs and the black book through victims' attorneys.” (Nick Bryant, 05:53)
• Media Reluctance:
  • For years, no mainstream publisher or outlet would touch the material, fearing lawsuits and reputational risk.
  • Quote: “I had the black book for, like, three years before anyone was willing to touch it.” (Nick Bryant, 08:43)
• First Publication:
  • Gawker, an independent New York media blog, finally published the materials in 2015.
  • Quote: “I was just glad that someone was going to publish it and let me write articles about it that was going to be published on a large platform.” (Nick Bryant, 11:10)
• Muted Impact:
  • Despite publication, coverage was limited, with mainstream media largely ignoring the story until later years.

2. Systemic Media Failure

• Reluctance to Prioritize Justice:
  • Bryant criticizes the media for chasing salacious details but not advocating for actual justice for victims.
  • Quote: “I'm not aware of, of one major media outlet that's called for justice… which I find mind boggling.” (Nick Bryant, 13:13)
• Influence & Intimidation:
  • Editorial fear, fear of lawsuits, and the power of those implicated contributed to years of silence.
  • Palmeri adds context from her own reporting experience, highlighting editorial policies that prioritize caution.

3. Cover-Ups and Compromised Justice

• Grand Jury Comparisons:
  • Bryant draws attention to the parallels between the Epstein saga and earlier scandals like the Franklin case—both featuring grand juries manipulated to deny abuse.
  • Quote: "I was reading these accounts of Epstein molesting these underage girls, and then this grand jury said that he hadn't molested anybody. And that kind of... I was a little exhausted… but I saw that the mainstream media wasn't doing anything about this." (Nick Bryant, 07:31)
• Government Reluctance:
  • Discussion of Alexander Acosta’s non-prosecution deal for Epstein in 2007, granting broad immunity to co-conspirators, named and unnamed.
  • Quote: “Potential co-conspirators, named and unnamed. Who gets that kind of broad immunity...?” (Tara Palmeri, 31:07)

4. Blockages to Justice and File Releases

• DOJ and Congressional Resistance:
  • Current efforts, driven by bipartisan House Resolution 581/discharge petition, aim to compel the DOJ to release Epstein files.
  • Speaker Mike Johnson is highlighted as a chief impediment, employing political maneuvers to avoid a House vote.
  • Quote: “There's something seriously wrong with Mike Johnson. He is the one... that's prevented the House from voting on the discharge petition.” (Nick Bryant, 19:28)
• National Security Claims:
  • Attorney General Pam Bondi claimed “only matters of national security will be redacted,” raising questions about why child abuse materials would involve national security.
  • Quote: “She said only matters of national security will be redacted. So now she has to tell us what a bunch of child molesters have to do with national security.” (Nick Bryant, 14:46)
• Public Demand for Disclosure:
  • CBS polls show 89% of Americans want the Epstein files released.

5. Activism – Epstein Justice Nonprofit

• Mission:
  • Demand independent congressional commission to investigate Epstein, hold perpetrators accountable, and expose government complicity.
  • Regularly encourages the public to pressure legislators (targeting one per week).
  • Quote: “What we want is an independent congressional commission... the Epstein case is the perfect case for an independent congressional commission.” (Nick Bryant, 22:24)

6. Victim Intimidation and Compensation

• Barriers for Survivors:
  • Many survivors are afraid to come forward, partly because accepting compensation required waiving the right to sue other perpetrators.
  • Only 225 out of over 1,000 known victims accepted compensation.
  • Quote: "Only 225 came forward to get money from Epstein’s victim compensation program...shows that they're terrified.” (Nick Bryant, 22:20)
• Legal Loopholes:
  • The Crime Victims Rights Act was ultimately ineffective due to technical loopholes in prosecution timing.

7. Examples of Complicity and Blackmail

• Wealth & Access:
  • Discussion of Les Wexner (epstein’s biggest financial patron), Ehud Barak, Leon Black, and the notion that Epstein's power was rooted in financial and intelligence links.
  • Vanity Fair’s reporting on Wexner giving Epstein power of attorney due to “loneliness” is called “absurd.”
  • Quote: “Vanity Fair reported that the reason why Les Wexner gave Jeffrey Epstein power of attorney... keys to his kingdom, is because he was lonely. You can't make it up.” (Nick Bryant, 27:19)
• Blackmail as Systemic Control:
  • Bryant sees similarities with prior cases (Franklin scandal, Confessions of a D.C. Madam) where intelligence agencies compromised politicians.

8. Spotlight on Unsung Heroes and Enablers

• Praised:
  • Michael Ryder, Palm Beach Police Chief, who wouldn’t let the case slide, is upheld as a rare hero.
  • Quote: “If it wasn’t for Michael Ryder, we wouldn’t even know the name of Jeffrey Epstein.” (Nick Bryant, 28:59)
• Villainized/Exposed:
  • Barry Krischer (state attorney), Alan Dershowitz (Epstein’s lawyer), and various female enablers named in Palmeri’s reporting.
  • The problematic role of lawyers like Stan Pottinger (alleged history of government cover-ups; possible intelligence connections).
  • Quote: “Stan was an assistant U.S. attorney, and if you needed a cover-up, Stan was your man. I call him the Forrest Gump of cover-ups.” (Nick Bryant, 37:06)

9. Media Reporting & Female Enablers

• Palmeri notes both the challenges and necessity of journalism that holds powerful women accomplices to account (referencing her own Politico piece, "The Women Who Enabled Jeffrey Epstein").
• Quote: “They claim that they are victims themselves and some of them are represented by the same lawyers as the victims. It's really quite tangled and messy.” (Tara Palmeri, 43:21)

10. Journalism vs. Activism

• Lines Blurred:
  • Palmeri probes Bryant about his activist turn. Bryant critiques “false dichotomy” between journalism and advocacy in the face of such clear injustice.
  • Quote: “I'm a journalist, and I believe in this. I mean, I don't think that the two are mutually exclusive. To be a journalist and then also to be an activist.” (Nick Bryant, 41:15)
• Palmeri remains committed to strict neutrality.

Notable Quotes (with Timestamps)

• “I got the flight logs and the black book through victims' attorneys.”
  — Nick Bryant (05:53)

• “I had the black book for, like, three years before anyone was willing to touch it.”
  — Nick Bryant (08:43)

• “I'm not aware of, of one major media outlet that's called for justice… which I find mind boggling.”
  — Nick Bryant (13:13)

• “She said only matters of national security will be redacted. So now she has to tell us what a bunch of child molesters have to do with national security.”
  — Nick Bryant (14:46)

• “Potential co-conspirators, named and unnamed. Who gets that kind of broad immunity...?”
  — Tara Palmeri (31:07)

• “If it wasn’t for Michael Ryder, we wouldn’t even know the name of Jeffrey Epstein.”
  — Nick Bryant (28:59)

• “Stan was an assistant U.S. attorney, and if you needed a cover-up, Stan was your man. I call him the Forrest Gump of cover-ups.”
  — Nick Bryant (37:06)

Timeline of Important Segments

• [04:43] Nick Bryant on acquiring black book and flight logs
• [08:43] Bryant describes publisher rejections and reluctance
• [11:45] First major publication and media impact
• [13:13] Critique of mainstream media’s lack of a justice agenda
• [15:12] Discussion of DOJ, FBI, and national security redactions
• [17:02] Founding and goals of Epstein Justice
• [22:24] Need for an independent Congressional commission
• [28:59] Michael Ryder, unsung hero
• [31:07] Non-prosecution agreement’s broad immunity
• [36:51] Stan Pottinger’s alleged cover-up history
• [41:15] Journalism vs. activism nuance
• [43:21] Female enablers, tangled accountability

Final Thoughts

The episode is a passionate plea to address long-standing governmental and institutional failures that have shielded powerful abusers. Nick Bryant’s journey—spanning initial discovery, years of being sidelined, and ongoing activism—highlight the entrenched power structures at play. Tara Palmeri’s incisive questions and own history reporting on Epstein ground the conversation in both journalistic rigor and outrage at continued impunity.

Epstein Justice, Bryant’s organization, is actively mobilizing citizens to push for transparency, accountability, and the release of the suppressed files. The episode encourages listeners to participate—while spotlighting the chilling systemic obstacles that persist, and urging scrutiny of everyone complicit.

Website for more: Epsteinjustice.com

Referenced Articles:

• “The Women Who Enabled Jeffrey Epstein” (Politico Magazine, Tara Palmeri, 2021)