Catch and Kill (Farrow) - Discussion Questions

Discussion Questions
We'll add publisher questions if and when they're available; in the meantime, use our LitLovers talking points to help start a discussion for CATCH AND KILL … then take off on your own:

1. Author Margaret Atwood called Catch and Release "chilling," while Kirkus Reviews said, "at times the book is difficult to read." What was your experience reading Ronan Farrow's account of sexual assault in high places?

2. (Follow-up to Question 1) What revelations in Ronan Farrow's account shocked you … angered you … or pained you most?

3. How did Harvey Weinstein get away with his sexual predation for so long? Who, or more important, what protected him?

4. Talk about the term "catch and kill"—and the ethics, or lack of ethics, reflected in that journalistic practice? Although catch and kill is typically deployed by tabloids, to what extent were the same, or similar, tactics practiced by NBC, Farrow's own employer?

5. In addition to the scare tactics (threats, lawyers, firing) what were some of the hurdles Farrow and Rich McHugh faced in actually reporting. Why, for instance, was it so difficult to get women to talk on the record? Would you have had the courage to open up?

6. A number of the women Farrow spoke to continued to have sexual encounters with the men who assaulted them. How can you explain that? Does that lessen the guilt of the men? Does that make the women complicit? Or is it part and parcel of the coercive powers of high-placed men?

7. Then there is Black Cube. Want to talk about that episode in Farrow's life? What was the purpose of hiring the intelligence firm? What about the other methods of intimidation leveled at Farrow?

8. Farrow's reportage was personalized for Farrow by his sister, Rose McGowan. What is the background of her story, how it has affected her life, and why for so long had Farrow dismissed the truth and seriousness of her claims. Woody Allen, anyone? Thoughts?

9. Talk about one of the most stunning revelations toward the end of the book: Matt Lauer. What is it with powerful men? Tackle that one.

10. Ultimately, will this book, and all the other coverage of sexual harassment, make a difference? Has it already? What about #MeToo? Has it made a lasting difference? In other words, do you foresee effective change—in both male behavior and society's attitude toward female abuse?

11. This question is a late addition the reading guide: In 2020 Weinstein was tried in a court of law and, in late February, found guilty. A month later, he was sentenced to 23 years in prison. A fair sentence? Too harsh? Not harsh enough?

(Questions by LitLovers. Please feel free to use them, online and off, with attribution. Thanks.)

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