Monica Lewinsky is opening about her very public affair with Bill Clinton in an effort to end cyberbullying.
President Clinton's took the podium today at Forbes' inaugural 30 Under 30 Summit in Philadelphia, PA, where she revealed her plan to launch a "cultural revolution" against the kind of bullying she was the victim of in the '90s.
"I was Patient Zero," she said during her a speech. "The first person to have their reputation completely destroyed worldwide via the Internet."
"There was no Facebook, Twitter or Instagram back then," the now-41-year-old explained. "But there were gossip, news and entertainment websites complete with comment sections and emails which could be forwarded. Of course, it was all done on the excruciatingly slow dial up. Yet around the world this story went. A viral phenomenon that, you could argue, was the first moment of truly 'social media.'"
Lewinsky also described what is was like to read the details of Clinton's affair online ... and the public humiliation that followed her for years.
"Staring at the computer screen, I spent the day shouting: 'Oh my god!' and 'I can't believe they put that in' or 'That's so out of context,'" she recalled. "And those were the only thoughts that interrupted a relentless mantra in my head: 'I want to die.'"
"Having survived myself, what I want to do now is help other victims of the shame game survive, too," she said. “I want to put my suffering to good use and give purpose to my past."
The infamous White House intern spent years out of the spotlight following the sex scandal, but began contributing to Vanity Fair back in July 2013. She also joined Twitter today.
What do you think of Monica's candid comments? Sound off below.
