Female journalist claims Harvey Weinstein performed sex act in front of her in hallway of posh Italian restaurant

A TV journalist who claimed Harvey Weinstein performed a sex act in front of her in the hallway of an exclusive restaurant has revealed why she spoke out.

Lauren Sivan opened her heart to saying she was "accosted" by the film mogul in Cipriani in Manhattan a decade ago.

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She revealed it was movie mogul's words to the New York Times after it broke the news of decades of alleged sexual harassment that spurred her into action.

“That apology was the final straw for me, so when I was contacted by a reporter, that is when I said, ‘Oh no, enough is enough with this guy.’ There is no remorse, there was no acknowledgement of the type of behaviour that was going on," Sivan said.

"If he did this with me, who is just a stranger, who is not an actress in Hollywood and doesn’t need anything from him, I can only imagine how many other women something like this has happened to.”

She added that she believes all of Weinstein's accusers  saying the casualness of his behaviour with her gave the impression she was not the only one.

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Looking back on the alleged incident Sivan claimed Weinstein took her downstairs for what he said would be a tour of the kitchen and they got down there and just saw two men sweeping.

She said Weinstein shooed them away and they walked to a hallway where he cornered her and tried to kiss her.

Sivan, who at the time was a news anchor on a local cable channel in New York, said when he told him to stop he blocked the exit and told her to be quiet.

That's when, she says, he performed the sex act.

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She said she was so  "shocked" she just "stood there dumbfounded."

“I was so shocked, I couldn’t believe, what was I witnessing.  It was disgusting and kind of pathetic really  to stand there and look at this man," she said.

"Just 20 minutes earlier he was having this great conversation with me and I felt so great and flattered by it. And then, [to have him say] 'stand there and be quiet,' just a few minutes later just negated any warm feelings I had and I realised 'Oh, that is what this is all about.'"

She added, "He finished and I said, 'Can I go now?' And he said, 'Yes let's go, let's both go.'"

Kelly then asked Sivan - now a Fox 11 reporter in Los Angeles - why she didn't come forward earlier to say what had happened.

"At the time I had this great job. I was living with my boyfriend in the city. I had this great life. I didn't know what going public would do to me," Sivan said.

Sivan said she's now "positive that more women will come forward" and that she's "not alone."

"It was kind of a horrible kept secret in Hollywood, that he had this type of behaviour. People would whisper about it all the time," she said of Weinstein.

"He could ruin people's careers if he didn't like you.”

The 65-year-old was fired Sunday by the Weinstein Co., the studio he co-founded, three days after a bombshell New York Times expose alleged decades of crude sexual behaviour on his part toward female employees and actresses, including Ashley Judd.

The Times said at least eight settlements had been reached with women.

A statement from Weinstein read: "I came of age in the 60's and 70's, when all the rules about behaviour and workplaces were different. That was the culture then.