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Some Describe An ‘Antiquated And Handsy Culture’ At The North Carolina General Assembly

This week in state politics,  an analysis of Gov. Roy Cooper's first State of the State address.
Jeff Tiberii
/
WUNC
This week in state politics, an analysis of Gov. Roy Cooper's first State of the State address.

Host Frank Stasio talks with WUNC Capitol Bureau Chief Jeff Tiberii about the culture surrounding sexual harassment at the North Carolina General Assembly.Revelations of sexual misconduct at the federal level have opened up inquiries into the culture in state houses around the country. At the North Carolina General Assembly, WUNC Capitol Bureau Chief Jeff Tiberii uncovered two incidents of reported misconduct: one from 2007 involving former Representative David Almond (R-Stanly), who allegedly exposed himself to a legislative assistant and then masturbated on an office chair.

The other is from 2003 in which former Representative Daniel McComas (R-New Hanover) allegedly pulled a woman around the office by her ponytail. Aside from these two incidents, Tiberii’s interviews with more than three dozen lawmakers, lobbyists, staff, interns and journalists, revealed what some describe as a “handsy and flirtatious culture,” and others call a “friendly and fraternity-like” environment. Host Frank Stasio talks with Tiberii about his reporting.

Read more of Jeff's reporting: "Does A 'Good Ol' Boy' Culture Pervade The North Carolina General Assembly?"

 

 

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Anita Rao is the host and creator of "Embodied," a live, weekly radio show and seasonal podcast about sex, relationships & health. She's also the managing editor of WUNC's on-demand content. She has traveled the country recording interviews for the Peabody Award-winning StoryCorps production department, founded and launched a podcast about millennial feminism in the South, and served as the managing editor and regular host of "The State of Things," North Carolina Public Radio's flagship daily, live talk show. Anita was born in a small coal-mining town in Northeast England but spent most of her life growing up in Iowa and has a fond affection for the Midwest.
Longtime NPR correspondent Frank Stasio was named permanent host of The State of Things in June 2006. A native of Buffalo, Frank has been in radio since the age of 19. He began his public radio career at WOI in Ames, Iowa, where he was a magazine show anchor and the station's News Director.