Six years ago when #MeToo was gaining steam, journalist Maureen Ryan's inbox was getting slammed. As the chief TV critic for Variety, Ryan investigated and published in-depth reports of sexual misconduct and workplace harassment committed by powerful people in Hollywood. Through that work, she became one of the few go-to journalists whom below-the-line workers trusted with their stories of abuse and mistreatment, and therefore, their careers.
More than half a decade later Ryan is a contributing editor for Vanity Fair, and her workload hasn't slowed down. Quite the opposite – she has enough stories to fill a book, and then some. The recently released "Burn It Down: Power, Complicity and a Call for Change in Hollywood" is a thoroughly researched and provocative examination of the sexism, racism and exploitative management practices pervading the entertainment industry. Salon published an excerpt, "Hollywood's 'list of excuses is endless': Enabling bad behavior, from Bill Murray to Jeff Garlin," in June. And she regrets to inform us that the putrefaction touches every corner of the place. Not even the Muppets have a spotless history.
