{"id":347708,"date":"2021-10-03T05:27:10","date_gmt":"2021-10-03T02:27:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/if-he-manipulated-me-im-glad-it-worked\/"},"modified":"2021-10-03T05:27:10","modified_gmt":"2021-10-03T02:27:10","slug":"if-he-manipulated-me-im-glad-it-worked","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/if-he-manipulated-me-im-glad-it-worked\/","title":{"rendered":"#&#8217;If he manipulated me, I&#8217;m glad it worked&#8217;"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;<strong>#&#8217;If he manipulated me, I&#8217;m glad it worked&#8217;<\/strong>&#8221;<\/p>\n<div>\n<aside class=\"single__inline-module alignleft\">\n        <\/aside>\n<p><em>Last December, former Bloomberg journalist Christie Smythe, now 39, shocked the country when she revealed that she had fallen in love with \u201cPharma Bro\u201d Martin Shkreli \u2014 who is serving seven years for lying to and defrauding investors, among other charges \u2014\u00a0only to be dumped by him from prison. Now, with a new documentary about Shkreli <\/em>streaming <em><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/geni.us\/PharmaBro\">Oct. 5<\/a>, the Manhattanite writes about the fallout from that bombshell and her ongoing friendship with Shkreli.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>OK, fine. I admit it. I have a thing for complicated guys.<\/p>\n<p>Perfectly functional, <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/social-mediaa\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"1\" title=\"Social Media\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">social<\/a>ly evolved, emotionally mature men aren\u2019t really my type, at least when it comes to my personal life. You might call me a bad feminist for saying that, but I don\u2019t think, as a 39-year-old self-sufficient professional woman, that I need to justify my tastes.<\/p>\n<p>Perhaps that\u2019s one plausible explanation for why I fell in love with \u201cPharma Bro\u201d Martin Shkreli.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/10\/christine-smythe.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1024\" alt=\"Christie Smythe began interviewing Shkreli in jail, she claims he was interested in her work and wanted to help society. \" class=\"wp-image-19679040\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/10\/christine-smythe.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1536 1536w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/10\/christine-smythe.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all 1024w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/10\/christine-smythe.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=512 512w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\"\/><figcaption>Christie Smythe began interviewing Shkreli in jail, she claims he was interested in her work and wanted to help society. <\/figcaption><figcaption><span class=\"credit\">Stephen Yang<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>You might remember when I went public about our relationship last December, via a <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.elle.com\/life-love\/a35021224\/martin-shkreli-christie-smythe-pharma-bro-journalist\/\">story in Elle magazine<\/a> (by writer Stephanie Clifford). The Internet had a minor meltdown over it. While it wasn\u2019t my plan to make so much of a splash, I wasn\u2019t shocked by the reaction.<\/p>\n<p>You see, Martin wasn\u2019t just any bad boy. He had been dubbed \u201cthe most hated man in America.\u201d The press has used just about every negative adjective invented to describe him. He earned that treatment by massively jacking up the sticker price of a toxoplasmosis drug while he was CEO of Turing Pharmaceuticals, by getting sent to prison for securities fraud, and by trolling journalists in all sorts of subversive (and sometimes deplorable) ways.<\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile, I had been a reporter at a major media outlet, where I broke the story of Martin\u2019s arrest and covered his securities fraud case. I was also, at the time, married. In theory I was the last person who should have been drawn into Martin\u2019s orbit, but I ended up there all the same.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/10\/Martin-Shkreli.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1024\" alt=\"By \u201cPharma Bro\u201d Martin Shkreli\u2019s 2017 trial for securities fraud (above), he was known as the most hated man in America, thanks to his jacking up drug prices and trolling behavior. \" class=\"wp-image-19679043\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/10\/Martin-Shkreli.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1536 1536w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/10\/Martin-Shkreli.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all 1024w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/10\/Martin-Shkreli.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=512 512w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\"\/><figcaption>By \u201cPharma Bro\u201d Martin Shkreli\u2019s 2017 trial for securities fraud (above), he was known as the most hated man in America, thanks to his jacking up drug prices and trolling behavior. <\/figcaption><figcaption><span class=\"credit\">Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Having degrees from two of the country\u2019s best journalism schools, I am well aware that reporters aren\u2019t supposed to get romantically involved with subjects or sources \u2014 and indeed, I did not do so while I was covering Martin. I\u2019m also not inclined to cheat on a spouse, given that I\u2019m a deeply honest person. Yet, today as I write this, I\u2019m now (h<a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/download-scripts-themes-apps\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"9\" title=\"Download Scripts &amp; Themes &amp; Apps\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">app<\/a>ily) divorced, (happily) no longer working in legacy media, and (happily) still friends with, although no longer the girlfriend of, Martin Shkreli.<\/p>\n<p>So how did all that happen? The Internet has produced many inane theories: that I was \u201ccrazy,\u201d or \u201cout for his money,\u201d or a \u201cfame whore,\u201d or just \u201ctrying to sell a book.\u201d To be fair, I was working on a book about the experience, and still am. By far the most ridiculous notion people seemed to settle on was that I was somehow \u201cmanipulated\u201d by Martin into leaving my job and my husband for him, as though a guy who couldn\u2019t avoid being a walking PR trainwreck had magical coercive powers.<\/p>\n<p>First things first: He does not.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-pullquote alignleft\">\n<blockquote><p>\u201cIf it was all a manipulation . . .\u00a0I\u2019m glad it worked.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><cite>Smythe says of her relationship with Shkreli<\/cite><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/figure>\n<p>There is certainly truth to stories that Martin can be manipulative. He\u2019s highly intelligent, having taught himself biology and chemistry among other technical subjects, and can be highly entertaining and affable in conversation when he\u2019s with someone he likes. Like most other human beings, he knows how to turn on his charm to get something he wants.<\/p>\n<p>While researching my book, I spoke to a number of his former girlfriends and learned how he plied them with things like jewels and expensive shoes, <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/trip-and-travel\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"10\" title=\"Trip &amp; Travel\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">trip<\/a>s and other goodies to win their favor. I\u2019m not really interested in free Jimmy Choos and handbags, though. Nor am I interested in transparently manipulative behavior.<\/p>\n<p>If there was anything at all that Martin did to win my favor, it was offering a gift of a very different sort, one that is infinitely more valuable to me: He showed respect for my intellect and my abilities. From the beginning of our interactions, I felt as though we genuinely connected. He asked for my opinion on significant matters, and seemed to take to heart many things I said. He read my writing, for real, and talked to me about it. In fact, he was impressed enough with my work that he first encouraged me to write a book.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/10\/Martin-Shkreli-3.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1024\" alt=\"A 2015 protest in NYC highlighting pharmaceutical\u00a0drug pricing. \" class=\"wp-image-19679042\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/10\/Martin-Shkreli-3.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1536 1536w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/10\/Martin-Shkreli-3.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all 1024w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/10\/Martin-Shkreli-3.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=512 512w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\"\/><figcaption>A 2015 protest in NYC highlighting pharmaceutical\u00a0drug pricing. <\/figcaption><figcaption><span class=\"credit\">AP<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>I didn\u2019t know how to assess all of this flattering behavior in the beginning. For a while I wondered if this, too, was some sort of ploy. But as our friendship evolved, and we spent hours together talking during many prison visits, and I got to know his family, his friends and other people in his circle, I realized our investment in each other was real.<\/p>\n<p>We started to seep into each other. He began talking about taking a \u201cwoke\u201d turn away from his previous trolling, about contributing more significantly to rare disease treatments and no longer hiking drug prices, and about trying to do good things for society.<\/p>\n<p>I started to think more confidently about myself \u2014 not quite on par with Martin\u2019s Trumpian bravado, but more sure of myself as a writer and an editor, as well as a <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/general\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"3\" title=\"General\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">general<\/a> doer of things, and more self-assured about creating my own destiny.<br \/>Indeed, after Martin introduced me to two of his friends in prison, both men of color who had received horrifically draconian sentences for nonviolent drug crimes, pieces that I wrote and posted on Medium furthered conversations that led to both getting released.<\/p>\n<p>By the time I left both my job and my husband, I had decided that neither relationship satisfied me. Both, in some ways, limited me, put controls on me and caused me unnecessary anxiety. I wanted agency, and wouldn\u2019t settle for anything less. When I went public in Elle, I knew Martin wouldn\u2019t be pleased. The idea of splattering a personal relationship across the pages of a magazine horrified him.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/10\/Martin-Shkreli-2.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1024\" alt=\"Shkreli is escorted by law enforcement agents in New York, after being taken into custody following a securities probe in 2015.\" class=\"wp-image-19679041\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/10\/Martin-Shkreli-2.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1536 1536w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/10\/Martin-Shkreli-2.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all 1024w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/10\/Martin-Shkreli-2.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=512 512w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\"\/><figcaption>Shkreli is escorted by law enforcement agents in New York, after being taken into custody following a securities probe in 2015.<\/figcaption><figcaption><span class=\"credit\">AP<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>But even his feelings, in that moment, took a back seat for me when it came to deciding what I wanted. Coronavirus was raging through the US prison system at the time (and still is to a significant extent). I was sick with worry for him and also tired of hiding, so I did what I felt was best.<\/p>\n<p>Now, I still live in Harlem, although I upgraded to a nicer apartment, and I found a job in the thriving digital media space, helping build a publication for an alternative data startup called Thinknum.<\/p>\n<p>I don\u2019t know what will happen when Martin gets out of prison. It is my hope that he takes to heart some of the things we talked about and makes an earnest effort to apply himself to something good. I do not imagine we would be \u201ctogether\u201d in a romantic sense, but a lifelong friendship seems probable.<\/p>\n<p>In the end, if it was all a manipulation \u2014 getting me to take charge of my life and write the narrative for myself \u2014 I\u2019m glad it worked.\n                        <\/p><\/div>\n<blockquote><p><strong><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">If you liked the article, do not forget to share it with your friends. Follow us on\u00a0<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><a style=\"color: #ff0000;\" href=\"https:\/\/news.google.com\/publications\/CAAqBwgKMLG0nwswvr63Aw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">Google News<\/a><\/span>\u00a0too, click on the star and choose us from your favorites.<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">For forums sites go to <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/forum.buradabiliyorum.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Forum.BuradaBiliyorum.Com<\/a><\/span><\/strong>\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>If you want to read more <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/news\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"2\" title=\"News\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">News<\/a> articles, you can visit our <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/news\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">News category.<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"color: black;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2021\/10\/02\/martin-shkrelis-ex-christie-smythe-if-he-manipulated-me-im-glad-it-worked\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;#&#8217;If he manipulated me, I&#8217;m glad it worked&#8217;&#8221; Last December, former Bloomberg journalist Christie Smythe, now 39, shocked the country when she revealed that she had fallen in love with \u201cPharma Bro\u201d Martin Shkreli \u2014 who is serving seven years for lying to and defrauding investors, among other charges \u2014\u00a0only to be dumped by him&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":347709,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/10\/Christie-Smythe-2.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&w=1024","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[70897],"tags":[116947,87284,73840,73111,139],"class_list":["post-347708","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-10-2-21","tag-martin-shkreli","tag-pharmaceuticals","tag-prison","tag-romance"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/347708","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=347708"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/347708\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/347709"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=347708"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=347708"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=347708"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}