Gayle King did not expect to be discussing the sexual misconduct allegations against her friend and co-host Charlie Rose during her Late Show appearance back when it was scheduled, but the current news cycle isn’t kind. A report on Rose in The Washington Post featured graphic allegations of sexual misconduct by Rose from at least eight women who worked or sought work with his PBS program, leading to his dismissal from CBS and PBS despite his denial that his actions should be considered “wrongdoings.”
King and her co-host Norah O’Donnell addressed the allegations on CBS This Morning on Tuesday and made it clear that they weren’t going to treat their former co-host any differently. She emphasized this during her interview with Colbert, telling the host that the news was painful and that she was still trying to comprehend Rose’s fall:
“To be honest with you, it still isn’t easy. It’s still very painful, it’s still very hurtful. Charlie and I worked together, been friends, but when you think about the anguish of those women despite the friendship you still have to report the news…
“I wanted to cancel because I didn’t want to be sitting here talking about this, but when you think about the job we do at CBS and how hard the people work, I want to know we are a top notch broadcast operation and that’s why I thought it was important to be here.”
King goes on to mention how the growing number of sexual assault allegations are stunning and echoes some of the sentiments shared by herself and O’Donnell on CBS This Morning, hoping for a change in the culture instead of just taking out these notable figures until the next time it happens.
She also mentions Colbert’s monologue for how it hit her close to home for its tone about Rose, but as the host points out, he was just doing his job. It is never fun to hear someone knock the people you know and consider your friends, even if it is funny. But where sometimes you want to do something similar to what Lena Dunham did over the weekend, King and her colleagues at CBS News put professionalism ahead of their personal feelings.
(Via The Late Show)