The company that includes some of the country’s most influential entertainment media sites announced it was launching an investigation into whether its president interfered in stories about a record executive friend accused of sexual harassment. On Friday, The Daily Beast reported that John Amato, president of Hollywood Reporter-Billboard Media Group—the parent company of The Hollywood Reporter, Billboard, Spin, Stereogum, and Vibe—had sought to review a series of stories about his close friend, former Republic group head Charlie Walk. The articles, which contained extensive original reporting, were never published after Amato raised concerns, high-level sources said. In an internal all-staff memo on Monday, the co-CEOs of Valence Media, which oversees the entire Hollywood Reporter-Billboard Media Group, said that they had “commenced the process of appointing an independent third party to lead a comprehensive review of the situation.” According to the email, Amato had “embraced this path forward,” and supported the review. The company also announced that it would create a “mechanism for people to share their perspectives in a confidential manner.”
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