• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia
MPWBroadsheet

Weinstein Co. offer, Sen. Susan Collins, Anne Wojcicki: Broadsheet for Nov. 20

Kristen Bellstrom
By
Kristen Bellstrom
Kristen Bellstrom
Down Arrow Button Icon
Kristen Bellstrom
By
Kristen Bellstrom
Kristen Bellstrom
Down Arrow Button Icon
November 20, 2017, 7:50 AM ET

Good morning, Broadsheet readers! A female-dominated board could soon oversee the Weinstein Co., Sen. Susan Collins is pushing for changes to the GOP tax bill, and we learn what Anne Wojcicki’s mom thinks of A-Rod. Have a productive Monday.

EVERYONE'S TALKING

• The men behind the man. Maria Contreras-Sweet, who led the Small Business Administration under President Obama, has reportedly submitted an offer to acquire Weinstein Co. In a letter to the board of directors, she said she hopes to be executive chairwoman of a majority-female board heading the studio, which would be renamed. Contreras-Sweet also wants to set up a fund for victims of alleged sexual misconduct by Harvey Weinstein and develop a mediation process to reach settlements with them.

Meanwhile, my Fortune colleague Shawn Tully has a look at the "corporate backstory about how a group of billionaire board members from the worlds of Wall Street and entertainment let Harvey Weinstein stay in power."

Shawn reports on the mind-blowing dysfunction that has plagued the board of the Weinstein Co., which one of his sources refers to as “the ultimate shit show." His report reveals—in infuriating detail—how the board's inaction "helped Harvey Weinstein remain all-powerful for more than a decade, as directors from the vanguard of the business elite enabled him to stay atop the company."

While it's far too soon to know whether Contreras-Sweet's offer will get any traction, Shawn's story drives home the reasons why bringing the company under the influence of a majority-female board would be such an important—and refreshing!—turn of events.

ALSO IN THE HEADLINES

• Being Baby Woj. I strongly recommend carving out a few minutes to read this fun, dishy profile of "Baby Woj"—a.k.a. 23andMe founder Anne Wojcicki—by Maureen Dowd. My favorite part: Wojcicki matriarch Esther's description of her daughter's ex, baseball celeb Alex Rodriguez. New York Times

• A good look. Fortune's Lucinda Shen digs into some of the numbers behind Stitch Fix's IPO, noting that the company's management team is split 50-50 by gender and that 43% of its board is female. Following the company's IPO, CEO Katrina Lake holds a stake worth $204.4 million and sold at least a million shares for a cash windfall of about $15.2 million.  Fortune

• Maine's main powerbroker. Maine Sen. Susan Collins is calling for changes to the Republican tax bill that's "barreling through the Senate." The GOP can afford to lose only two votes and still pass the bill, putting Collins, who has a history of refusing to bow to party pressure, in a powerful negotiating position.  WSJ

• Overcoming abuse. This profile of Swedish foreign minister Margot Wallstrom illustrates how a history of abuse helped shape what she describes as her “feminist foreign policy." New York Times

MOVERS AND SHAKERS:  Lynn Utter, CEO of First Source, has been named to the board of Lincoln Financial Corporation. SoulCycle co-founder Julie Rice has joined WeWork as Chief Brand Officer.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

• Olympic apology. Olympic gymnast Gabby Douglas has apologized for tweets that many saw as an attempt to victim-shame. Responding to her former teammate Aly Raisman—who said on Twitter that women dressing “sexy” does not entitle men to sexually abuse them—Douglas argued that women should “dress modestly” and not attract “the wrong crowd.” (Simone Biles, another Olympics teammate, also chimed in, siding with Raisman.) The Twitter skirmish comes a week after Raisman revealed that she was among the gymnasts who had been sexually abused by team doctor Lawrence Nassar. New York Times

• Missing Maura. Jeffrey Tambor, one of the leads of the wonderful Amazon show Transparent, says he is leaving the production in the wake of sexual harassment allegations against him. Tambor, who has denied the charges, says he is exiting the role over what he calls the hostile “politicized atmosphere” on the set. Deadline

• Answering Perry's prayers. A jury has decided that California businesswoman Dana Hollister must pay Katy Perry $1.57 million for interfering with the pop star’s plans to buy a former convent.  Fortune

Share today's Broadsheet with a friend.
Looking for previous Broadsheets? Click here.

ON MY RADAR

'New Washingtonian' Podcast: Senator Kirsten Gillibrand  New York Times

When sexual harassment is legal  Fortune

‘Revolt’ in France against sexual harassment hits cultural resistance  New York Times

Victoria's Secret fashion show in Shanghai gets messy as Katy Perry and Gigi Hadid are denied visas  Fortune

QUOTE

It’s a terrible hate what’s going on now. I hope that my speaking is a way of starting to repair the world, to change the direction for us.
Holocaust survivor Sonia Warshawski on her motivation for making 'Big Sonia,' a documentary about her life
About the Author
Kristen Bellstrom
By Kristen Bellstrom
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in MPW

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • Future 50
  • World’s Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Editorial Calendar
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Diversity And Inclusion
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Editorial Calendar
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Diversity And Inclusion
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in MPW

The short, uneasy tenure of Pam Bondi
NewslettersMPW Daily
The short, uneasy tenure of Pam Bondi
By Emma HinchliffeApril 3, 2026
2 hours ago
Olympic champion Eileen Gu’s advice for women seeking her heights of career success: Don’t be a small fish in a big pond, ‘Create your own pond’
MPWMost Powerful Women
Olympic champion Eileen Gu’s advice for women seeking her heights of career success: Don’t be a small fish in a big pond, ‘Create your own pond’
By Emma HinchliffeMarch 31, 2026
3 days ago
Can Sheryl Sandberg’s Lean In take on tradwives and the manosphere?
NewslettersMPW Daily
Can Sheryl Sandberg’s Lean In take on tradwives and the manosphere?
By Emma HinchliffeMarch 27, 2026
7 days ago
Influencer Alix Earle turned her worst insecurity into her first brand. This is her plan to monetize her 14 million followers and make it last
MPWMost Powerful Women
Influencer Alix Earle turned her worst insecurity into her first brand. This is her plan to monetize her 14 million followers and make it last
By Emma HinchliffeMarch 26, 2026
8 days ago
The youngest-ever female CEO of a Fortune 500 company is fighting Trump’s cuts to keep Medicaid strong
MagazineCentene
The youngest-ever female CEO of a Fortune 500 company is fighting Trump’s cuts to keep Medicaid strong
By Diane BradyMarch 24, 2026
10 days ago
Three Asias, three different playbooks: How PepsiCo’s Anne Tse views the world’s fastest-growing snack market
AsiaPepsiCo
Three Asias, three different playbooks: How PepsiCo’s Anne Tse views the world’s fastest-growing snack market
By Nicholas GordonMarch 20, 2026
14 days ago

Most Popular

Gen Z fled San Francisco for Texas and Florida. Now they’re turning ‘welcomer cities’ into the next big tech towns
Real Estate
Gen Z fled San Francisco for Texas and Florida. Now they’re turning ‘welcomer cities’ into the next big tech towns
By Fortune EditorsApril 2, 2026
1 day ago
Major 4-day workweek study suggests that when we work 5 days we spend one doing basically nothing
Success
Major 4-day workweek study suggests that when we work 5 days we spend one doing basically nothing
By Fortune EditorsApril 2, 2026
1 day ago
Current price of oil as of April 2, 2026
Personal Finance
Current price of oil as of April 2, 2026
By Fortune EditorsApril 2, 2026
1 day ago
Paul Krugman smacks down Trump speech with argument that $4 gas is ‘less than half’ of the Hormuz hit. Here’s what he’s talking about
Economy
Paul Krugman smacks down Trump speech with argument that $4 gas is ‘less than half’ of the Hormuz hit. Here’s what he’s talking about
By Fortune EditorsApril 2, 2026
21 hours ago
Current price of gold as of April 1, 2026
Personal Finance
Current price of gold as of April 1, 2026
By Fortune EditorsApril 1, 2026
2 days ago
Trump wants to add nearly $7 trillion to the $39 trillion national debt with his new military budget, watchdog warns
Economy
Trump wants to add nearly $7 trillion to the $39 trillion national debt with his new military budget, watchdog warns
By Fortune EditorsApril 2, 2026
20 hours ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.