Famous faces including 50 Cent and Snoop Dogg have slammed Gayle King for bringing up Kobe Bryant’s 2003 rape case in a CBS interview.
The NBA legend and his 13-year-old daughter Gianna tragically died in a helicopter crash earlier this month, alongside seven other people.
After Kobe’s death hit headlines, the basketball player’s previous sexual assault case resurfaced on social media.
Back in 2003, a hotel employee accused Kobe of sexual assault, but the criminal case was dismissed after his accuser refused to testify.
Gayle King recently interviewed retired WNBA star Lisa Leslie about her relationship with Kobe for CBS This Morning, and during their chat, she asked Lisa about Kobe’s rape case.
After a teaser for the interview was posted on Twitter, fans and friends of the late athlete criticised Gayle for bringing it up.
Gayle King has to be one of the most disrespectful woman I’ve seen on television. Why are you worried about allegations that are resolved ? Go find something to do. #RudeGayle #LetKobeRestInPeace pic.twitter.com/RxbmrURXzt
— Lioness Arising “The Phoenix” # Follow Me (@Bella67520673) February 7, 2020
Responding to the backlash in a video posted on Instagram, Gayle publicly slammed her employer CBS for sharing a “salacious” and “out of context” clip from the interview.
She said: “I’ve been up reading the comments about the interview I did with Lisa Leslie about Kobe Bryant, and I know that if I had only seen the clip that you saw, I’d be extremely angry with me too.”
“I am mortified. I am embarrassed and I am very angry. Unbeknownst to me, my network put up a clip from a very wide-ranging interview, totally taken out of context, and when you see it that way, it’s very jarring.”
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The broadcaster said she was “advised to say nothing,” but wanted to address the backlash after reading messages on social media.
“The last thing I would want to do is disparage him (Bryant) at this particular time,” she said. “I hope people understand that.”
In a separate statement, CBS News said: “Gayle conducted a thoughtful, wide-ranging interview with Lisa Leslie about the legacy of Kobe Bryant.”
“An excerpt was posted that did not reflect the nature and tone of the full interview. We are addressing the internal process that led to this and changes have already been made.”
