Jeffrey Toobin | |
|---|---|
 Toobin at the 2012Texas Book Festival | |
| Born | Jeffrey Ross Toobin (1960-05-21)May 21, 1960 (age 65) New York City, U.S. |
| Education | Harvard University (BA,JD) |
| Occupation(s) | Legal analyst, commentator |
| Notable credit(s) | The New Yorker (1993–2020) CNN senior legal analyst (2002–2022) |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 3 |
| Parent(s) | Jerome Toobin Marlene Sanders |
| Website | jeffreytoobin |
Jeffrey Ross Toobin[1] (/ˈtuːbɪn/; born May 21, 1960) is an American lawyer, author, blogger, and legal analyst forCNN.[2][3]
During theIran–Contra affair, Toobin served as an associate counsel on its investigation at theDepartment of Justice. He moved from government and the practice of law into full-time writing during the 1990s, when he published his first books. He wrote forThe New Yorker from 1993 until 2020[4], where Toobin was fired for masturbating on-camera during a Zoom videoconference call with co-workers; he apologized for his conduct and stated that he believed his camera was off during the incident.[5][6][7][8][9] He continues to serve as a legal analyst for CNN.
Toobin has written several books, including accounts of the 1970sPatty Hearst kidnapping and her time with theSLA, theO. J. Simpson murder case, and theClinton–Lewinsky scandal. The latter two were adapted for television as seasons ofFX'sAmerican Crime Story, with the Simpson case premiering in 2016.
Toobin was born to aJewish-American family[10] in New York City in 1960,[11] a son ofMarlene Sanders, formerABC News andCBS News correspondent, andJerome Toobin, anews broadcasting producer.[12] His younger brother, Mark, born in 1967 with Down syndrome, has lived apart from the family.[5]
Toobin attendedColumbia Grammar & Preparatory School. While attendingHarvard College for undergraduate studies, he covered sports forThe Harvard Crimson.[13] His column was titled "Inner Toobin". Toobin graduatedmagna cum laude with aBachelor of Arts degree in American history and literature and was awarded aHarry S. Truman Scholarship.
He attendedHarvard Law School, where classmates includedElena Kagan, and he served as an editor of theHarvard Law Review. He graduated in 1986 with aJ.D.,magna cum laude.[14]
Toobin began freelancing forThe New Republic while a law student. After passing thebar exam, he worked as alaw clerk to U.S. circuit judgeJ. Edward Lumbard of theU.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. Next he served as an associate counsel forIndependent CounselLawrence Walsh during theIran–Contra affair andOliver North's criminal trial. He moved to serve as an AssistantUnited States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York in Brooklyn.[15]
Toobin wrote a book,Opening Arguments: A Young Lawyer's First Case: United States v. Oliver North (1991),[16] about his work in the Office of Independent Counsel, to which Walsh objected. Toobin had been required to sign multiple agreements to protect the confidentiality of grand jury and internal proceedings of the office. But he had taken thousands of pages of notes with him and based his book on such information, revealing material that Walsh believed should have been held as private. Toobin went to court to affirm his right to publish. JudgeJohn F. Keenan of theUnited States District Court for the Southern District of New York wrote an opinion that Toobin and his publisher had the right to release this book. The book was published before Walsh's appeal could be decided, mooting the case. Accordingly, the Circuit Court vacated the lower court's decision and ordered the dismissal of the case.[17]
After three years as an Assistant U.S. Attorney, Toobin resigned from theU.S. Attorney's office in Brooklyn, and abandoned "the practice of law."[citation needed] He started working as a writer atThe New Yorker in 1993 and became a television legal analyst forABC in 1996.
Toobin has provided broadcast legal analysis on several high-profile cases. In 1994, Toobin broke the story inThe New Yorker that the legal defense team inO. J. Simpson's criminal trial planned to accuseMark Fuhrman of theLAPD of planting evidence.[18] Toobin provided analysis ofMichael Jackson's2005 child molestation trial,[19] theO. J. Simpson civil case, and independent prosecutorKenneth Starr's investigation of PresidentBill Clinton.
He published books on some of these cases:The Run of His Life: The People v OJ Simpson (1997), andA Vast Conspiracy (1999), about the investigation of Clinton for the Monica Lewinsky sex scandal. Each of these books was later adapted for television, the Simpson case as a mini-series, and the Clinton as an episode.
In 2000, Toobin received anEmmy Award for his coverage of theElián González custody saga, which had resulted in the return of the boy from the United States to communist-led Cuba.
Toobin joinedCNN in 2002[18] as a legal analyst. In 2003, he secured the first interview withMartha Stewart about theinsider trading charges against her.[4]
Toobin is the author of seven books. His bookThe Nine: Inside the Secret World of the Supreme Court (2007) received awards from theColumbia University Graduate School of Journalism and theNieman Foundation for Journalism atHarvard University.[18]
His next book wasThe Oath: The Obama White House and the Supreme Court (2012).American Heiress: The Kidnapping, Crimes and Trial ofPatty Hearst (2016), explored events from the 1970s. All wereNew York Times Best Sellers.
He wroteTrue Crimes and Misdemeanors, the Investigation of Donald Trump (2020), described as a "summation for the jury" against the character and presidency ofDonald Trump, as if he were on trial.[20]
On August 12, 2022, Toobin announced viaTwitter that he would leave CNN after 20 years. His last day on air was August 4.[21] In February 2024, Toobin began appearing again on CNN as a frequent guest, offering analysis on both president Biden and former president Trump's current legal situations.[22]
Two of Toobin's books were adapted for television. His book on the OJ Simpson trial was adapted asThe People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story, a 2016 mini-series comprising the first season of theFX true-crime anthology series.[23]A Vast Conspiracy (1999), about the Clinton-Lewinsky scandal, was adapted as a series,Impeachment: American Crime Story (2021), in theFX anthology.[24]
On October 19, 2020, during the first year of theCOVID-19 pandemic, Toobin was suspended fromThe New Yorker after hemasturbated on camera during aZoom video call betweenNew Yorker andWNYC radio staffers.[5][6][7][8][9] CNN said Toobin "has asked for some time off while he deals with a personal issue, which we have granted". Toobin said in a statement: "I made an embarrassingly stupid mistake, believing I was off-camera. I apologize to my wife, family, friends and co-workers."[25] In November 2020, he was fired fromThe New Yorker, following an internal investigation by the parent organization,Condé Nast.[26]New York Public Radio, which owns WNYC, indefinitely banned Toobin from its broadcasts and podcasts.[5]
Toobin was widely ridiculed in the wake of the incident by, among others,O. J. Simpson,Jimmy Fallon,Bill Maher,Donald Trump Jr., and performers onSaturday Night Live.[27] Defenders includedTina Brown, a formerNew Yorker editor, who said that "27 years of superb reporting and commitment toThe New Yorker should have been weighed against an incident that horribly embarrassed the magazine but mostly embarrassed himself." Canadian author and journalistMalcolm Gladwell said he "read the Condé Nast news release, and I was puzzled because I couldn't find any intellectual justification for what they were doing."[5]
On June 10, 2021, Toobin returned to CNN as its chief legal analyst. He described his conduct as "deeply moronic and indefensible" and said he "didn't think other people could see [him]", but admitted that this was no defense for his behavior. He said the time he spent off air went toward "trying to be a better person", working on his upcoming book about theOklahoma City bombing, going to therapy, and working at afood bank.[28]
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In 1986, Toobin married Amy Bennett McIntosh, whom he met in college while they worked atThe Harvard Crimson. She is a 1980 Harvard graduate, holds anMBA degree fromHarvard Business School,[1][13] and has held executive positions atVerizon Communications andZagat Survey.[29] They have two adult children, a daughter and son.[29]
Toobin had a longtime off-and-onextramarital affair with attorney Casey Greenfield, the daughter of American television journalist and authorJeff Greenfield and his first wife, Carrie Carmichael. Casey Greenfield was formerly married to screenwriterMatt Manfredi.[30] Greenfield gave birth to Toobin's son in 2009; Toobin initially resisted acknowledging the boy. Toobin's paternity was confirmed with aDNA test as part of a suit by Greenfield forcustody andchild support.[31]
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Jeffrey Toobin said Friday that he will depart CNN, where he served most recently as chief legal analyst...Toobin, who was last on air August 4th, added, "Love all my former colleagues."
Toobin has been with CNN for 20 years. He made his departure public in a tweet.
CNN legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin returned to the network Thursday for the first time in more than seven months after he was caught masturbating on a Zoom call with former colleagues at The New Yorker.
Toobin, who is Jewish, is a CNN Senior Analyst, a judicial expert, a staff writer forThe New Yorker, and a bestselling author.
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