London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Friday, Feb 20, 2026

Google's latest, explosive sex-abuse claims are yet another sign of a destructively permissive culture built up over years

Google's latest, explosive sex-abuse claims are yet another sign of a destructively permissive culture built up over years

Google's sex-abuse culture is once again under the spotlight after allegations from a former female employee that a powerful male senior executive abused his power to have multiple extramarital affairs with colleagues.

 Jennifer Blakely, a former Google legal manager, on Wednesday published an astonishing account on Medium of her time at the company and of her affair with Alphabet's chief legal officer, David Drummond.

She outlined how she and Drummond had a consensual relationship while he was married and had a child together, but she said that her life changed drastically after she was shifted out of the legal department, that she struggled with her new role, and that she decided to leave.

 Drummond, she alleged, abandoned the relationship suddenly, struck up an affair with another Google employee, and continued seeing his son "exclusively on his terms."

Drummond and Google did not immediately comment on Blakely's version of events.

The New York Times in October initially reported on some of Blakely's allegations against Drummond. Her story and those of others at Google sparked huge employee protests last year over the company's treatment of sexual-misconduct allegations. It forced CEO Sundar Pichai to reveal that 48 people had been fired from Google over such allegations.

 That Times story cast new light on Google's generally permissive culture around relationships, resulting in some lurid accounts of several male executives abusing their power.

Eric Schmidt, the former Google chairman, once kept a mistress as a company consultant, The Times said. The Android chief Andy Rubin reportedly received a $90 million payoff after he was accused of sexual misconduct. It was widely reported in 2014 that the Google cofounder Sergey Brin split from his wife and had an affair with a younger coworker. And Richard DeVaul, formerly a Google X director, offered a prospective employee a back rub during what she thought was a job interview, she told The Times. DeVaul subsequently resigned.

This begins to look like a pattern, not least because Google hasn't punished many of these high-profile men.

Schmidt didn't resign from Alphabet's board until May of this year — and there was no suggestion it was related to any of the accusations against him. Google invested in Rubin's subsequent company, Playground Global, after he left the firm. Drummond is one of the most senior and highest-paid executives at Alphabet, earning even more than Pichai. Brin has become more elusive at internal events but has spoken at all-hands meetings this summer and remains on the firm's board.

 A Twitter account for the Google protesters commented on Blakely's story: "This is a powerful first person account about the long term effects of #metoo and the systemic culture of treating people like objects at the highest levels of Google. This hurts all of us — of all genders and at all levels of the company."

Google did respond to last year's protests by overhauling its policies on sexual misconduct, ending forced arbitration, increasing training for executives, and improving reporting tools.

But the latest shocking claims from Blakely, the trickling departure of the Google Walkout organizers, new workplace-discussion rules that could prevent similar protests from bubbling up in the future, and the fact that women remain severely outnumbered in the highest echelons of the company — only two of its 10 board members are women — suggest cultural change has a long way to go.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
UK Confirms Preferential U.S. Trading Terms Will Continue After Supreme Court Tariff Ruling
U.S. and U.K. to Hold Talks on Diego Garcia as Iran Objects to Potential Military Use
UK Officials Weigh Possible Changes to Prince Andrew’s Position in Line of Succession Amid Ongoing Scrutiny
British Police Probe Epstein’s UK Airport Links and Expand High-Profile Inquiries
Early 2026 Data Suggests Tentative Recovery for UK Businesses and Households
UK Introduces Digital-First Passport Rules for Dual Citizens in Border Control Overhaul
Unable to Access Live Financial Data for January UK Surplus Report
UK Government Considers Law to Remove Prince Andrew from Royal Line of Succession
UK ‘Working Closely with US’ to Assess Impact of Supreme Court Tariff Ruling
Trump Criticises UK Decision to Restrict Use of Bases in Potential Iran Strike Scenario
UK Foreign Secretary and U.S. State Chief Hold Strategic Talks as Tensions Rise Over Joint Air Base
Two teens arrested in France for alleged terror plot.
Nordic Fracture: How Criminal Scandals and Toxic Ties are Dismantling the Norwegian Crown
US Supreme Court Voids Trump’s Emergency Tariff Plan, Reshaping Trade Power and Fiscal Risk
King Charles III Opens London Fashion Week as Royal Family Faces Fresh Scrutiny
Trump’s Evolving Stance on UK Chagos Islands Deal Draws Renewed Scrutiny
House Democrat Says Former UK Ambassador Unable to Testify in Congressional Epstein Inquiry
No Record of Prince Andrew Arrest in UK as Claims Circulate Online
UK Has Not Granted US Approval to Launch Iran Strikes from RAF Bases, Government Confirms
AI Pricing Pressure Mounts as Chinese Models Undercut US Rivals and Margin Risks Grow
Global Counsel, Advisory Firm Co-Founded by Lord Mandelson, Enters Administration After Client Exodus
London High Court dispute over Ricardo Salinas’s $400mn Elektra share-backed bitcoin loan
UK Intensifies Efforts to Secure Saudi Investment in Next-Generation Fighter Jet Programme
Former Student Files Civil Claim Against UK Authorities After Rape Charges Against Peers Are Dropped
Archer Aviation Chooses Bristol for New UK Engineering Hub to Drive Electric Air Taxi Expansion
UK Sees Surge in Medical Device Testing as Government Pushes Global Competitiveness
UK Competition Watchdog Flags Concerns Over Proposed Getty Images–Shutterstock Merger
Trump Reasserts Opposition to UK Chagos Islands Proposal, Urges Stronger Strategic Alignment
Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis advocates for a ban on minors using social media.
Liberal Senator Michaelia Cash Accuses Prime Minister of Lying to Australians
Meanwhile in Time Square, NYC One of the most famous landmarks
Jensen Huang just told the story of how Elon Musk became NVIDIA’s very first customer for their powerful AI supercomputer
A Lunar New Year event in Taiwan briefly came to a halt after a temple official standing beside President Lai Ching‑te suddenly vomited, splashing Lai’s clothing
Jillian Michaels reveals Bill Gates’ $55 million investment in mRNA vaccines turned into over $1 billion.
Ex-Prince Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor's arrested
Former British Prince Andrew Arrested on Suspicion of Misconduct in Public Office
Four Chagos Islanders Establish Permanent Settlement on Atoll
Unitree Robotics founder Wang Xingxing showcases future robot deployment during Spring Festival Gala.
UK Inflation Slows Sharply in January, Strengthening Case for Bank of England Rate Cut
Hide the truth, fake the facts, pretend the opposite, Britain is as usual
France President Macron says Free Speech is Bull Sh!t
Viktor Orbán getting massive praise for keeping Hungary safe, rich and migrant-free!
UK Inflation Falls to Ten-Month Low, Markets Anticipate Interest Rate Cut
UK House Prices Climb 2.4% in December as Market Shows Signs of Stabilisation
BAE Systems Predicts Sustained Expansion as Defence Orders Reach Record High
Pro-Palestine Activists Cleared of Burglary Charges Over Break-In at UK Israeli Arms Facility
Former Reform UK Councillors Form New Local Group Amid Party Fragmentation
Reform UK Pledges to Retain Britain’s Budget Watchdog as It Seeks Broader Economic Credibility
Miliband Defends UK-California Clean Energy Pact After Sharp Criticism by Trump
University of Kentucky to Host 2026 Summer Camps Fair Connecting Families with Local Programmes
×