Who is E Jean Carroll? The respected magazine columnist who’s legal battle with Donald Trump begins today

Much has been discussed about Donald Trump’s recent appearance in a New York courtroom for his arraignment stemming from 34 felony counts stemming from his undisclosed payment to adult film actress Stormy Daniels. But today, Trump faces another legal battle - this time against respected author and columnist E. Jean Carroll for civil battery and defamation.

In 2019, the former Elle magazine columnist made headlines when she accused former US President Donald Trump of sexually assaulting her in a department store dressing room in the mid-1990s. Trump denied the allegations, stating that Carroll, 79 years old, was “not his type.” Unlike his arraignment in New York earlier this month, Trump will not be on hand as the trial begins jury selection this afternoon. Because it is a civil case, Trump is unlikely to appear in the Manhattan federal courtroom, his lawyers have said, unless he is called to testify in Carroll’s case or opts to take the stand in his own defence.

As of now, there are no criminal charges being brought against Trump regarding the rape allegations made by Carroll. In her civil lawsuit filed in Manhattan federal court, Carroll did not mention a specific sum of money but is requesting financial compensation and a retraction of a social media statement made by Trump in October 2022.

Known by some as the “Hunter S Thompson of feminism,” Carroll was born in Detroit, Michigan and went on to study English Literature for an undergraduate degree, before moving over to France to study French Literature at the Sorbonne in Paris - she shortly left New York after completing her studies to forge her career as both a columnist and an author. 

Carroll’s journalism career started in the ‘70s, penning articles for Esquire, Outside and Playboy in the infancy of her writing career. In the 1980’s, she penned a series of books that dealt with feminism during the decade, including Female Difficulties: Sorority Sisters, Rodeo Queens, Frigid Women, Smut Stars, and Other Modern Girls in 1985, which examined sorority rushing, the Miss Rodeo America contest, pornographic movie stars, sexual frigidity, and the experiences of women in a variety of walks of life.

It would be her long-running advice column for Elle, “Ask E. Jean,” which started in 1993, that brought her to widespread attention to modern readers.

The “gonzo” style of her writing, which frequently blended irreverent humour with witty responses to her readers, was praised for its blend of practical advice yet still maintained its entertaining element that E. Jean created throughout her career and led to the comparisons to the great Hunter S. Thompson.

However, she was fired from Elle magazine in 2020 in what she described as a character assassination by the former POTUS, writing on Twitter; "because Trump ridiculed my reputation, laughed at my looks, & dragged me through the mud."

Elle maintained that the decision to fire Carroll was a business decision unrelated to Trump.

Aside from her writing, Carroll has also worked as a television host, a radio personality, and an actress. She has appeared on several popular TV shows, including Saturday Night Live and The Today Show, and has also hosted her own talk show, Ask E. Jean, on the Oxygen network.