Noam Chomsky

Noam Chomsky (born December 7, 1928, in Philadelphia) is an American linguist and political writer, long a professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.¹ He and his wife, Valéria Chomsky, were introduced to Jeffrey Epstein at one of Chomsky's professional events in 2015, and the Wall Street Journal's 2023 reporting on Epstein's calendars recorded their meetings in 2015 and 2016.¹² Epstein moved 270,000 dollars for Chomsky through his office and paid him 20,000 dollars for designing a linguistics prize.²³ Chomsky suffered a stroke in June 2023 and has since been unable to speak publicly; his wife issued the family's account in February 2026.²

The Meetings

According to Valéria Chomsky, Epstein "presented himself as a philanthropist of science and a financial expert" and "began to encircle Noam, sending gifts and creating opportunities for interesting discussions." The couple lunched once at Epstein's ranch in New Mexico, the Zorro Ranch, in connection with a professional event; dined at his Manhattan townhouse; stayed a few times in an apartment he offered them in New York; and visited his Paris apartment once on a work trip. She wrote: "We never went to his island or knew about anything that happened there," and "At no time did we see children or underage individuals present."² Epstein proposed meetings between Chomsky and other figures Chomsky was interested in, and in that setting Chomsky wrote a letter of recommendation; the statement does not say for whom.²

Epstein told Chomsky that he was being unfairly persecuted over his 2008 conviction. Valéria Chomsky wrote that Epstein "created a manipulative narrative about his case, which Noam, in good faith, believed in," with the aim of "having someone like Noam repairing Epstein's reputation by association," and that the couple did not learn the details of the conviction until the Miami Herald's November 2018 reporting.² Her statement answered released emails in which Chomsky advised Epstein on his press coverage.²

The Cambridge Correspondence

On October 28, 2015, Epstein wrote jointly to Chomsky, the Harvard mathematical biologist Martin Nowak, and the computer scientist Danny Hillis: "would sat the 14th work? cambridge."⁴ Nowak directed Harvard's Program for Evolutionary Dynamics, founded in 2003 with a 6.5 million dollar Epstein gift, where Epstein kept an office and keycard access until 2018.⁵ On December 23, 2015, Epstein wrote to Chomsky and Nowak together: "animals dream . the mouse is not really there when the cat is chasing it in its dream. if dreams represent a language with no memory or grammar, they could be the precursor to language."⁶

The 270,000 Dollars

The Journal reported in May 2023 that Epstein "moved $270,000 for Noam Chomsky and paid $150,000 to Leon Botstein," the president of Bard College, and that "the two academics have confirmed" the payments.³ Chomsky told the Journal that the money related to the estate of his first wife, Carol Chomsky, who died in December 2008: "My late wife died 15 years ago after a long illness. We paid no attention to financial issues." He added: "We asked Epstein for advice. The simplest way seemed to be to transfer funds from one account in my name to another, by way of his office."⁷ Asked about meeting Epstein, he said: "First response is that it is none of your business. Or anyone's. Second is that I knew him and we met occasionally."⁷

Valéria Chomsky's 2026 account described the same transfer differently. She wrote that "these were entirely Noam's own funds," that Chomsky had "identified inconsistencies in his retirement resources that threatened his economic independence," and that Epstein "offered technical assistance to resolve this specific situation," "recovering the funds for Noam, in a display of help and very likely as part of a machination to gain greater access to Noam." She added: "To the best of my knowledge, Epstein never had access to our bank or investment accounts," and "Noam and I never had any investments with Epstein or his office."²

The 20,000 Dollar Check

Separately, Epstein asked Chomsky to devise "a linguistic challenge that Epstein wished to establish as a regular prize." Chomsky did the work and "Epstein sent a check for US$20,000 as payment," with Epstein's office arranging with Valéria Chomsky for the check to be sent to the couple's home.²

The 2026 Statement

Valéria Chomsky published her statement on February 9, 2026, writing that Chomsky, then 97, was under constant medical care and "completely unable to speak or engage in public discourse." "We were careless in not thoroughly researching his background," she wrote. "This was a grave mistake, and for that lapse in judgment, I apologize on behalf of both of us." She said Chomsky's 2023 answers to the press "failed to adequately acknowledge the gravity of Epstein's crimes," because he "took it as obvious that he condemned such crimes," and closed: "we express our unrestricted solidarity with the victims."²