Back in 2006, The View star Rosie O’Donnell slammed TV host Kelly Ripa for the mean, “homophobic” remarks she made about singer Clay Aiken on her show, Live With Regis and Kelly. In a tell-all book, she once explained why she defended Aiken back then. When the singer joined Ripa on the show, at one point he put his hand on her mouth and then she said something that caused outrage.
The very next day, Rosie O’Donnell criticized her on The View saying that her comment was homophobic. Aiken and O’Donnell are really good friends and the singer even thanked her later for defending him.
Kelly Ripa was accused of being homophobic
In November 2006, singer Clay Aiken joined Kelly Ripa on her show, Live With Regis and Kelly. But it seemed like the two did not get along. When Aiken put his hand over her mouth at one point, the TV host said,
“I don’t know where that’s [Aiken’s hand] been, honey!”
This caused outrage as Ripa’s comments felt like an attack and this is exactly what The View star Rosie O’Donnell felt as she bashed the TV host on her show.
Rosie O’Donnell criticized Kelly Ripa
The very next day, Rosie O’Donnell criticized Kelly Ripa on her talk show, The View. She said that it was a “homophobic” remark and if it was an attractive, straight man Ripa would’ve had a different reaction. She said,
“If that was a straight man, if that was a cute man, if that was a guy that she didn’t question his sexuality, she would’ve said a different thing.”
At the time, Aiken was hesitant to come out and O’Donnell was really supportive. The singer later thanked her for defending him. Ripa later explained her side claiming that Aiken was “hostile” and she felt “disrespected by his nature.”
Rosie O’Donnell explained why she defended Aiken
Almost a decade later, Rosie O’Donnell explained why she decided to defend Aiken in a tell-all book, written by Ramin Setoodeh,
“A few days before he went on Live he had been a guest on The View. He had come into my dressing room, crying about whether or not to come out. And I sat down with him and I talked to him. He was inching his way out in the way so many born-again Southern Christians have to. I hugged him. Not only do I feel the twenty-years-older mother thing, I feel the twenty-years-old younger-gay thing. So I had just held a crying boy and then watched him be gay bashed by Kelly Ripa.”
However, around the same time, it was revealed that O’Donnell apologized to Ripa for “gay-bashing.” Ripa has been actively supportive of the LGBTQ community. Aiken also later pointed out that O’Donnell “outed him” in a way when she made the “straight man” statement about Ripa’s actions.
Source: US Magazine
