E. Jean Carroll’s Vibrant Sex Life Ended 30 Years Ago. She Wants It Back.

Modern Love

The New York Times

Love, New York Times, Nytimes, Essay, Loss, Storytelling, Society & Culture, Redemption, Nyt

4.3 • 9K Ratings

🗓️ 3 September 2025

⏱️ 32 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

When the writer E. Jean Carroll accused President Trump of sexual assault in 2019, she unearthed a memory she had pushed away for decades. She also admitted, for the first time, something she hadn’t fully reckoned with: She hadn’t had sex since. In this episode, Carroll tells Anna Martin what it was like for her to go from “man crazy” to someone who could not engage in even the slightest flirtation. She had always prided herself on moving forward with a smile and not dwelling on the past. But in recent years, as Carroll went public with her story, and as she took Mr. Trump to court twice, she began to realize that finally facing the loss of her sex life might be an important step toward getting it back. Carroll’s latest book, “Not My Type: One Woman vs. a President,” came out in June. Here’s how to submit a Modern Love essay to The New York Times. Here’s how to submit a Tiny Love Story.

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hello, everybody, right here.
0:02.4	Please.
0:03.4	How do you feel about headphones with the hair?
0:05.5	I don't care.
0:06.5	You don't? Okay.
0:07.5	This is a wig. What do I care? This is Tallulah.
0:10.5	You know, I've got Trudy.
0:12.0	When I met Ejean Carol a few weeks ago, she walked into our studio wearing a blonde wig and a blue flight suit.
0:19.0	Carol used to be known primarily as a journalist and a writer,
0:22.1	and for her very popular advice column in Elle magazine called Ask E. Jean. But she stepped into a very
0:28.6	different kind of spotlight in 2019. That's when she accused Donald Trump of sexually assaulting her
0:34.2	over 20 years earlier in a dressing room at Bergdorf's. First, she published
0:39.2	her story in New York Magazine, and then in a book called What Do We Need Men for? A Modest Proposal.
0:46.3	President Trump denied the accusation. Carol sued. And in the fall of 2022, she walked into a room
0:52.9	full of lawyers for a deposition.
0:55.1	There were hours of questions.
0:56.8	And it was grueling.
0:58.0	It was grueling.
0:58.6	But there was this one question that Carol told me she actually enjoyed answering.
1:04.1	And the question was, I hate to ask you, But big smile.
1:11.3	Like, you know, oh boy.
1:13.5	Can you tell me who you've slept with?
	...

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