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By Root 865 0

accusations. Hostile senators primed the public to despise my claim and the law from which it arose. The press contributed by publishing the misinformation with little attempt at balance. A 1992 Columbia Journalism Review study showed that the press coverage was biased in favor of Thomas, with his proponents quoted three times more often than those who favored a hearing on my claim. Thomas’ family life and personal background were explored quite positively by the press for weeks prior to the leak. Before the hearing the press gave little attention to my background. The New York Times carried a major story about me featuring a photograph of my parents, but it was the only paper to do so. Only after the hearing did the press explore my background, and then only to prove or disprove this or that theory about my charges. With nothing to contradict them, hostile senators could portray me in any manner they chose. Once the hearing started, those same senators could paint my claim as bizarre or aberrant and therefore incredible, since credible information about sexual harassment was also absent from the press coverage.

The hearing had not started, but already five members of the Judiciary Committee had blasted my claim publicly. Despite the many errors in their statements, the press continued to pay great deference to the senators. Peter Jennings described them as “profoundly intelligent men.” No member of the committee expressed a belief in the veracity of my claim. Those who did not actively campaign against it preferred to remain neutral.

I realized that I would go to Washington for a hearing but had only the sense from the statements of Senators Simpson, DeConcini, and Specter of what reaction to expect. David Boren, the Democratic senator from Oklahoma and a graduate of the University of Oklahoma School of Law, had not returned calls from Dean David Swank, who had begun calling him on Monday, October 7. Surely by now Senator Boren knew the reason for the call. But in an unmistakably political move Boren had already declared his support for Thomas, even before the Senate Judiciary Committee concluded its first hearing evaluating Thomas’ competency for the position. Yet, neither Boren nor anyone on his staff has ever discussed any matter related to the hearing with me. Interestingly, on my subsequent return to Oklahoma, Lyle Boren, the senator’s father and a former politician, made a concerted effort to contact me, calling the law school more than once until he reached me. The elder Mr. Boren, now deceased, apologized to me and told me of his embarrassment at his son’s position during the hearing.

David Swank had also contacted Senator Don Nickles, Republican from Oklahoma, who did return the call, though he supported the Thomas nomination as well. During our conversation on Tuesday, October 8, he seemed uninterested in my claim. He talked instead about the difficulty of traveling from Oklahoma City to Washington, D.C. He also invited me and my family to visit his office for a tour if we were “out sight-seeing during your trip to Washington for the hearing.” At the time, I declined his offer, and I rather doubt that I will be asked again. It was clear that despite the fact I was a voter in Oklahoma, I had no representation in Washington from either Boren or Nickles.

During the evening of October 8, I received a telephone call from Senator Joseph Biden, who formally informed me of the hearing. It was to be a public hearing that would convene “as early as Friday.” This left me less than seventy-two hours to prepare. “Harriet Grant will help you with the witnesses,” Biden said.

“How many witnesses will I be allowed to call?” I wanted more specifics than I had gotten from the committee before.

“Anita, I mean Professor, I assume that in addition to your testimony we will hear from Ms. Hoerchner,” he responded. “You both will be subpoenaed by the committee. I strongly recommend that you contact someone who can talk about sexual harassment. I understand that Judge Thomas plans to call two coworkers as well as women who worked