Monica Lewinsky On Fappening: ‘I Feel Outrage As A Fellow Victim’

No, hackers did not release nude photos of Monica Lewinsky. Nevertheless, Ms. Lewinsky is no stranger to privacy violations. The investigation of Bill Clinton’s affairs led to 20 hours of private conversations between Linda Tripp and the former White House intern being released into the public on C-Span. Although that court release isn’t quite comparable, Ms. Lewinsky is still taking this opportunity to speak out against violations of personal privacy in an op-ed in Vanity Fair.

The op-ed starts out by describing an event from Monica’s life, one that closely resembles the massive celebrity nude photo leak, dubbed The Fappening, that has victimized dozens of starlets.

Several months ago, naked photos of Lewinsky were purportedly released. Monica says that the potential leak left her embarrassed and shocked until she saw that they were just fakes. The former intern says that news of the Fappening reminded her of the sense of shock she felt that day. As a result she says she, “I felt compassion for these young women.”

Lewinsky then dove into the true privacy violation that claimed her professional life, the Bill Clinton investigation.

“In 1998, more than 20 hours of surreptitiously audiotaped “girl talk” between my putative friend Linda Tripp and me… were published on C-SPAN. This is a far cry from the horror of having one’s personal cache of nude photos hacked and disseminated worldwide, but the searing embarrassment and stinging humiliation are still there.”

Another thing that the Fappening and Monica Lewinsky scandals have in common is that the government is actively investigating the allegations. The Los Angeles Times reported a few weeks ago that the FBI was looking into the situation. FBI spokeswoman Laura Eimiller made a statement.

“The FBI is aware of the allegations concerning computer intrusions and the unlawful release of material involving high profile individuals, and is addressing the matter.”

The only difference is the FBI will be investigating to prevent further information from being released, rather than in Monica Lewinsky’s case where the government was actively hunting for information to make public.

Lewinsky is only the latest voice to weigh in on the scandal. Celebrity voices like Tina Fey, Seth Rogen and Hunger Games co-star Josh Hutcherson are among just a few who have condemned the photos release.

Lewinsky’s op-ed finishes with a call to action, to better protect the right to privacy for Americans. Saying,

“Like so many others, I feel outrage—as a fellow victim, as a civilized individual, and as a woman—when other women are so easily and publicly violated.”

Monica Lewinsky’s full piece for Vanity Fair can be read here.

[Image Credit: AP Photo/OIC]