Thread by @DavidNorthWSWS

That a federal jury in Manhattan needed only 90 minutes to rule in actor #KevinSpacey's favor exposes the non-existence of credible evidence supporting accuser Anthony Rapp's claim that he was sexually assaulted by Spacey 36 years ago. 1/

But Rapp's claims, first made in 2017 in the early days of the rapidly escalating #MeToo witch-hunt, were sufficient to destroy the career of one of the greatest contemporary American actors. The media, led by the #NYTimes, treated untested accusations as proof of guilt. 2/

Spacey's career was brought to an immediate end. He was removed from "House of Cards" and fired from his starring role in "All the Money in the World." The outcome of the trial has vindicated the principled stand taken by the WSWS against the witch-hunt. 3/

In an article posted on November 1, 2017, titled, "May a word be spoken on behalf of Kevin Spacey?", WSWS arts editor David Walsh wrote:
"We live once again in an era of denunciations, which have the power to wreck lives overnight. And everyone is expected to chime in. ... 4/

"Once again it’s 'scoundrel time.' The film world, it is clear now, has learned nothing from the McCarthyite period. 5/

"The same essential modus operandi is at work: the naming of names, the guilt by association, witnesses who can’t be questioned, the right-wing forces who weigh in, the studios that instantly blacklist those accused." 6/

Walsh concluded: "We don’t make any bones about our sympathy with Kevin Spacey and our contempt for those inciting denunciations and urging on the witch-hunting hysteria." His entire essay, vindicated by today's verdict, can be accessed at: wsws.org/en/articles/20… 7/7