Monica Lewisnky Delivers Cyber Bullying TED Talk: ‘I Was Patient Zero’ for Online Shaming

The former White House intern also said, “Not a day goes by I’m not reminded of my mistake”

Monica Lewinsky addressed cyber bullying in a TED Talk on Thursday, making only her second public appearance since leaving the public eye in 2005.

She began by saying, “At the age of 22 I fell in love with my boss. At the age of 24 I learned the devastating consequences.”

Lewinsky was of course referring to her now-infamous affair with then-President Bill Clinton. She continued, “Not a day goes by that I am not reminded of my mistake, and I regret that mistake deeply.”

The London School of Economics graduate said she “was patient zero of losing a personal reputation on a global scale almost instantaneously.”

In 1998 when the scandal broke, the Internet was still a new technology, with most media outlets relying on print or television to distribute information. However, it was news aggregation site Drudge Report that first reported on the Lewinsky-Clinton affair.

“It was the first time traditional news was usurped by the Internet, a click that reverberated around the whole world,” Lewinsky said.

Almost overnight, Lewinsky said she became “that woman,” with people all over the world labeling her “a tramp, tart, slut, whore.”

“A marketplace has emerged where public humiliation is a commodity and shame is an industry,” Lewinsky said. “The more we click on this kind of gossip, the more numb we get to the human lives behind it.”

Lewinsky concluded her remarks by saying, “Anyone who is suffering from shame and public humiliation needs to know one thing: You can survive it. I know it’s hard. It may not be painless, quick or easy, but you can insist on a different ending to your story.”

Lewisnky’s speech has received very positive attention, with TV showrunner Shonda Rhimes tweeting a simple “YES” in response.

Lewinsky’s TED Talk comes on the heels of Ashley Judd’s announcement that she will press charges against Twitter trolls for sexist and misogynist comments made against her.

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