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Hollywood executive Harvey Weinstein in Los Angeles, on Jan. 10, 2016.EMILY BERL/The New York Times

The advertising industry needs its Harvey Weinstein moment.

That's the argument put forth by Cindy Gallop, a consultant and former advertising executive who advocates on issues such as gender equality. Last month, in the wake of the recent revelations about multiple accusations of sexual assault against the Hollywood producer, Ms. Gallop put out a public call on Facebook asking women and men in advertising to email her at cindy@ifwerantheworld.com to tell their stories, and to name names. Since then she has received more than 150 e-mails.

"I always knew it was bad. I had no idea it was this bad," Ms. Gallop said in an interview. "I am appalled by what I'm finding in my inbox."

The Weinstein domino effect: Who else is accused of sexual harassment so far? Read the list

The messages shock her because they point to how widespread the problem is – encompassing agencies large and small, across holding companies – including stories about men who she considered friends and who have publicly proclaimed their support for gender equality and diversity in the industry.

"I'm horrified by the degree of terror in both women and men when it comes to the idea of speaking out publicly," she said. "I'm hearing again and again, 'I'll never work again,' 'I have a family,' 'I can't do this.' And that's because the men who are harassing are the gatekeepers – to jobs, to promotions, to pay raises, to awards, to ambitions, to career trajectories."

Ms. Gallop wants to connect people with reporters, and is encouraging them to consider speaking on the record and naming names – noting that anonymous stories have circulated in the industry for years and have not brought about change. She plans to speak about this in a keynote in New York on Friday at the 3% Conference, which focuses on female leadership in the industry.

Last year, the American Association of Advertising Agencies (4A's) published a study saying that more than half of women in advertising had experienced sexual harassment – defined as unwanted sexual advances or obscene remarks.

Of the many e-mails Ms. Gallop has received in nearly three weeks since her call went out, only one has come from Canada, she said. "I want to hear Canadian stories as well."

Ms. Gallop says she has heard about human resources departments failing to act when employees report bad behaviour, and about settlements that are conditional on their recipients signing non-disclosure agreements to prevent them speaking about the incident. She points to the example of Zelda Perkins, who broke a 1998 NDA to speak about the alleged sexual harassment she experienced while working as Mr. Weinstein's assistant.

She also points to the example of Susan Fowler, a 26-year-old Uber employee whose blog post detailing a toxic work environment at the company led to the firing of senior executives and the resignation of CEO Travis Kalanick. In an interview with the New York Times, Ms. Fowler spoke of her fear of being defined by the incident for the rest of her life. She ultimately concluded, "if what people know you for is bringing light to an issue about bad behaviour, about bad stuff going on and laws not being followed and people being treated inappropriately, why wouldn't I want that? That's a badge of honour," she told the Times.

Lastly, Ms. Gallop points to director Quentin Tarantino, who told the Times that he had heard stories about Mr. Weinstein for years, and regretted doing nothing.

"I am getting men writing to me who say, 'I know I should have done more,'" she said. "Now is the time to make that right." She added that women are also among the bystanders – and that men have faced harassment. She wants to shed light on those stories as well.

Leaders at ad agencies who want to make a difference should stand up and communicate their willingness to hire whistle-blowers, Ms. Gallop said, to assuage fears that people will be unemployable if they speak publicly.

"The recurring motif is, 'I left the industry,'" she said. "That's why I say this is not a human rights story, this is not a doing-the-right-thing story. This is a business story. Our industry has hemorrhaged vast amounts of talent, skills, and creativity because of this issue."

srobertson@globeandmail.com

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