If you weren't glued to a television or a clunky desktop computer in 1998, it is hard to explain how inescapable Monica Lewinsky was. She wasn't just a name. She was a constant presence. For a 24-year-old former White House intern, the year was a blur of FBI stings, grand jury rooms, and a level of public shaming that basically invented the modern "cancel culture" we see today.
The whole thing started with a whisper on the internet. Specifically, the Drudge Report. On January 17, 1998, Matt Drudge posted a headline that would change American politics forever, claiming Newsweek was sitting on a story about a sexual relationship between the President and an intern.
Honestly, the speed at which it moved was terrifying. Within days, Bill Clinton was at a podium with Hillary Clinton by his side, wagging his finger and telling the world he did not have sexual relations with "that woman."
But the "that woman" narrative was only just beginning.
The Sting at the Ritz-Carlton
Most people forget that the legal drama for Monica Lewinsky in 1998 actually started in a mall.
On January 16, just a day before the story broke online, Monica met her "friend" Linda Tripp for lunch at the Ritz-Carlton in Pentagon City. She thought they were just hanging out. Instead, she was led into a room where FBI agents and prosecutors from Kenneth Starr’s office were waiting.
They held her there for nearly 12 hours. They threatened her with 27 years in prison. They told her she needed to cooperate and wear a wire to record conversations with the President’s secretary, Betty Currie, and Vernon Jordan.
📖 Related: Judge Dana and Keith Cutler: What Most People Get Wrong About TV’s Favorite Legal Couple
Monica refused. She wanted to call her lawyer. They told her she couldn't. It was a brutal introduction to the high-stakes world of Independent Counsel investigations.
The Betrayal of the Tapes
The reason the FBI was even there was because of Linda Tripp. Tripp had been secretly recording her phone calls with Monica for months.
We’re talking about 22 hours of tapes. On these recordings, Monica sounded like exactly what she was: a young woman in over her head, venting about a complicated relationship with her boss. Tripp, on the other hand, was playing the role of the concerned advisor, often steering the conversation toward details that would later become evidence.
It was on these tapes that the world first heard about the "blue dress."
The Science of the Scandal
For months, the White House denied everything. The "vast right-wing conspiracy" line was the go-to defense. It worked for a while, too. Clinton’s approval ratings actually went up during the early months of the scandal.
Then came the DNA.
👉 See also: The Billy Bob Tattoo: What Angelina Jolie Taught Us About Inking Your Ex
In July 1998, after months of legal maneuvering, Monica Lewinsky struck an immunity deal with Kenneth Starr. She handed over a Gap dress—navy blue, size 12—that she had kept in her closet at the Watergate apartments.
The FBI lab in Washington D.C. didn't take long. They compared a stain on the dress to a blood sample from the President.
The match was definitive.
This was the "smoking gun" that forced Clinton's hand. On August 17, 1998, he sat for a grand jury deposition and then walked into the Map Room to give a four-minute televised address. He admitted the relationship was "not appropriate" and "wrong."
A Culture of Shaming
The media in 1998 was ruthless. There’s no other way to put it.
Monica was a "bimbo." She was a "stalker." Late-night comedians made her the punchline of every single monologue. While Clinton was criticized for his actions, the vitriol directed at Monica was deeply gendered and personal.
✨ Don't miss: Birth Date of Pope Francis: Why Dec 17 Still Matters for the Church
Journalists dissected her weight, her makeup, and her family history. They published the "Starr Report" in September, which contained graphic sexual details that had nothing to do with the legal charges of perjury or obstruction of justice. It was basically government-funded erotica, and it was everywhere.
People read it on the train. They talked about it at the water cooler.
Monica, meanwhile, was hiding in her mother’s apartment, only allowed to leave for doctor's appointments or meetings with her legal team. Her lawyer, William Ginsburg, became a constant fixture on the Sunday morning talk shows, trying to navigate a media storm that he admitted was bigger than anything he’d ever seen.
Why 1998 Still Matters Today
Looking back at the timeline of Monica Lewinsky in 1998, it’s easy to see it as a relic of the 90s—all pagers and Berets. But it was the first "viral" event.
It was the moment the internet proved it could take down a presidency (or at least try to). It changed how we talk about consent, power dynamics in the workplace, and the ethics of journalism.
If you're looking for lessons from that year, here are a few takeaways that still hold up:
- The Internet is Permanent: Monica was the first person to have her private life archived online forever. Once the Starr Report was uploaded, there was no "deleting" it.
- Friendship and Privacy: The Linda Tripp tapes remind us that privacy is a fragile thing, especially when politics are involved.
- Power Imbalance: In 1998, the focus was on the "affair." Today, we talk about the massive power gap between a 22-year-old intern and the Leader of the Free World.
To really understand the cultural shift, you should watch Monica Lewinsky’s 2015 TED Talk, "The Price of Shame." It provides a perspective that was completely missing during the frenzy of 1998. You might also want to look into the "Slow Burn" podcast (Season 2), which does an incredible job of tracking the month-by-month breakdown of how the scandal unfolded from the perspective of those who lived through it.