Gayle King has spoken candidly about the situation at ABC News involving GMA3 anchors TJ Holmes and Amy Robach.
Holmes and Robach made headlines this month after reports suggested that the co-anchors had begun a romantic relationship. The pair have since been taken off air temporarily by ABC News.
During an appearance on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen, the CBS Mornings anchor weighed in on the drama after she was asked if she feels grateful it’s not happening to her network when “all hell is breaking loose” at rival outlets.
In response to the question, King, 67, laughed before jokingly responding: “No.”
The news anchor then elaborated, telling Cohen that she looks at the situation at ABC News with interest. “I look at the situation and I do say: ‘It’s very interesting what’s happening over there,’” she said.
However, King said she also has concerns over the drama at the other network, as she claimed it has “just gotten very messy”.
“It’s just gotten very messy and very sloppy,” she continued. “I do think that.”
According to King, in the beginning, before Holmes and Robach were taken off air, she thought the way it was being handled by the network presented Good Morning America in a positive light, because the co-anchors are “two consenting adults”.
“But then the more you read, it’s just very messy. And I think it’s just, to me, a sad situation because you’ve got kids involved, you’ve got families involved, and I keep thinking about that,” she added. “I’m very concerned about that.”
Holmes and Robach reportedly started their relationship in August, around the same time they both ended their separate marriages, according to DailyMail. That month, Holmes split from his wife of 12 years, Marilee Fiebig, while Robach separated from her husband of 12 years, Andrew Shue.
Robach has two children, daughters Ava and Analise, who she shares with ex-husband Tim McIntosh. Holmes has two children, Brianna and Jaiden, with his first wife, Amy Ferson. He and Fiebig also share a child together, daughter Sabine.
Although the co-anchors have not officially addressed the rumours of a romantic relationship, they subtly addressed the situation last week on air, when they jokingly alluded to the reports.
Robach and Holmes were taken off air on Monday 5 December, when Variety reported that ABC News president Kim Godwin had informed staff of the temporary change.
According to the outlet, Robach and Holmes would not perform their anchoring duties while ABC News weighed the impact their alleged romance may have on the show and the company, with Godwin reportedly referring to the rumoured relationship as “an internal and external disruption”.
However, Godwin allegedly told employees that Robach and Holmes have not violated any company policy.
As of now, it is not clear when the pair, who have been temporarily replaced by Gio Benitez and Stephanie Ramos, will return to their anchoring duties.
King is not the only TV host to weigh in on the situation, as Howard Stern also addressed the pair’s reported relationship. According to Stern, he doesn’t “understand what the problem is”.
“If those two work together and they wanna bang and be in love, what do I give a s***? Why is that like offensive to people?” he asked.
The Independent has contacted ABC News for comment.
