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One week into scandal, Jian Ghomeshi's cupboard of allies is almost bare

Ex-CBC host says all rough sexual acts were consensual, vows to meet allegations from recent days 'directly'

Less than a week ago, Jian Ghomeshi was an adored media personality backed by a legion of fans, the Canada’s public broadcaster, high-profile industry insiders and a large majority of the country’s arts and cultural elite.

Today, Ghomeshi stands nearly alone.

As fans flee in droves, and as the now-fired CBC radio host and admitted kinkster digs in for a major lawsuit against his former company, his list of supporters – even those seeking nuanced ground – grows short.

Save for a select few, public sentiment has turned against Ghomeshi as now nine women have come forward describing their rough, unwelcome sexual encounters with the celebrity.

Two of those women have publicly identified themselves – actor Lucy Decoutere and author Reva Seth– while the rest remain too afraid of repercussions to come forward. But as the circumstances behind more than a decade of Ghomeshi’s sexual encounters come to light, the scandal moves beyond a he-said-she-said situation.

Carleton University has announced has launch an investigation into its journalism school’s internship history with CBC to determine whether any students worked on “Q” – the arts and culture radio program Ghomeshi hosted and co-created. A Twitter account that accused Ghomeshi of impropriety last April had hinted that female Carleton University media grads should beware of him.

The Ottawa Citizen reports that Carleton has identified 53 students who were placed at CBC headquarters in Toronto and will be offering counselling to any who desire it. It is still not clear whether any Carleton students worked directly with the radio program.

This is not the only investigation to launch since the Toronto Star began reporting on now nine separate women who allege Ghomeshi had harassed or acted inappropriately sexually aggressive toward them over the past 12 years. While Toronto police said they were not currently planning to investigate, they urged victims to step forward and speak with police.

CBC announced on Thursday that they would hire an independent investigator to probe allegations of impropriety as they relate to CBC employees. Several of the victims allege to have met Ghomeshi through the workplace and one says she was harassed in the offices of “Q.”

One woman who has complained that Ghomeshi cupped her butt and told her he wanted to “hate f__k” her while at work told the National Post that she had complained to management in 2012, but they had shrugged the incident off.

On Thursday, two public relations firms dropped Ghomeshi as a client. Navigator, a high-profile crisis management firm he had recently hired, released a statement confirming they were not representing him, while Rock-it Promotions posted a tweet that it “will no longer be representing Jian Ghomeshi.”

The Toronto Star cited sources who confirmed Navigator had dropped Ghomeshi because agents felt he had lied to them over the depths of the issue.

Ghomeshi had said in a Facebook post that he enjoys rough, consensual sex with willing partners, and that any suggestions of impropriety would come from a jilted lover. He accused CBC of firing him for what he does in his personal life and has sued for $55 million.

And it is at this point where Ghomeshi still finds some allies. Some claim that since Ghomeshi hasn’t been charged he shouldn’t be punished. Former MP Sheila Copps said as much on Twitter, suggesting allegations not taken to the police should not result in his termination.

"The state (and the CBC) have no place in the bedrooms of the nation. Good luck and stand tall!" Copps wrote to Ghomeshi earlier this week, and has taken steps to earnestly defend that point in the days since.

Copps is not alone. There are at least two online petitions launched by supporters opposing CBC’s decision to fire him. In one, Melissa Pyle writes that “the choice to fire Jian Ghomeshi because of unfounded harassment based on his personal choices is wrong and your listeners will not stand for it.” The petition has received more than 4,500 signatures.

“By signing this petition individuals are showing support for Jian Ghomeshi across the globe and we all believe that everyone has a right to personal privacy,” Pyle writes.

Another petition, which has received nearly 1,000 signatures, reads:

CBC has fired him abruptly because of allegations an ex girlfriend has made about his personal sex life. We want to remind the CBC that this is Canada, this is the year 2014, and we are tolerant and unconcerned about the differences people have in their personal lives.

Ghomeshi’s termination is the focus of his lawsuit, though there has already been some doubt cast on the case’s chance of success.

There was at least one other supporter of Ghomeshi’s to step forward over this past week. A former sexual partner spoke to prominent U.S. sex columnist Dan Savage and said the public accounts of Ghomeshi do not mesh with what she experienced.

The anonymous woman, who has long held a proclivity for rough sex, described Ghomeshi as extremely cautious during her interactions with him in 2012.

"So my experience with Jian was that he wanted it to be fun for both people. Because that one time where it looked like I was uncomfortable … it was very important to him that that not happen—he didn’t want to do or say things that I didn’t like too," she said.

As Savage notes, this account does not undermine the accusations made by other women. Each instance was its own situation with its own set of circumstances, involving different women. It is a mere indication that not all of Ghomeshi’s rough sexual interactions were unwelcomed. We must balance that reality, the way we must balance the accusations he now faces with due process.

Either way, it would seem Ghomeshi doesn’t stand alone. Though his mountaintop is a far cry less crowded than it was a week ago.