The host of The Morning Show, Gayle King has responded to the backlash over asking WNBA star Lisa Leslie about Kobe Bryant’s past during her CBS This Morning interview. The interview received intense backlash after a promo clip of King bringing up Kobe’s rape allegations during the heartfelt interview that was for celebrating his life and legacy. After the clip was shared by CBS, the host became public enemy number one with both Kobe fans and celebs alike.
King was originally known for being the best friend to Oprah Winfrey and often her sidekick on her daytime talk show. She has held the position of lead anchor for CBS’s The Morning Show since it debuted in 2012. King also is the editor and chief of Oprah’s magazine, O Magazine. However, there has been a major backlash against King after she interviewed WNBA star Lisa Leslie on CBS This Morning. King had put Leslie in the hot seat when she asked the basketball legend about Kobe Bryant’s dismissed 2003 rape case and the status of his legacy after his fatal helicopter crash that claimed his life, his 13-year-old daughter Gigi Bryant and seven other passengers on January 26th.
The interview, which aired Tuesday morning, showed King bringing up the uncomfortable question. She asked Leslie: “It’s been said that his legacy is complicated because of a sexual assault charge, which was dismissed in 2003, 2004. Is it complicated for you as a woman, as a WNBA player?” Leslie responded by saying it was not complicated for her at all, as the person she knew would never be aggressive in that manner. After receiving quite the backlash from Kobe’s fans and many celebrities for bringing up the allegations during a segment that should have been about his achievements and celebrating his successes, King decided to make a public apology on her Instagram. King posted a video on February 6th, captioned, “My Perspective,” check out the full video below:
Humbled, King told her viewers that the clip they saw was completely taken out of context and she was “mortified” at the editing of the clip and said she would have been upset too if she had seen it before. King explained that the CBS network used the out-of-context clip from the interview, without informing her, for promo for the interview. King tried to get her followers to understand that the interview wasn’t just about Kobe’s dismissed case and that it actually included a wide-ranging conversation. She admitted that seeing the clip out of context is very upsetting. King continued her apology as she shared with fans that she was bombarded with calls and at that current moment had no idea what they were talking about until she saw the clip herself.
The Morning Show host went on to say that she had been advised to say nothing. She told her followers that her representation told her people would always try to drag someone else down but that the trolling would end in a couple of days. For King, that was not enough, as she wanted her fans to know she was upset about the situation. A spokesperson for CBS News commented by saying that King had performed a thoughtful interview and that an excerpt was posted that did not reflect the true tone of the conversation. Fans will have to watch the full CBS This Morning interview to get a full perspective on the controversy.
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Source: Gale King
