The old Ellen timeslot may be simply cursed, as reports have come to light of toxicity on The Kelly Clarkson Show. Now, before anyone freaks out, let it be known that the allegations don’t involve Kelly Clarkson herself, but even still, these reports are disquieting.
Fans know that Kelly is a reality TV veteran with a lovable persona. She was American Idol’s first winner 20 years ago. After that, she was a judge on The Voice.
Her popularity in television and music led her to replace Ellen DeGeneres in the 3 p.m. daytime talk show timeslot. In her time as host, she’s interviewed the likes of the Jonas Brothers, Sandra Bullock, Beyonce, and many others.
Kelly ‘makes it a great day,’ but her producers?
But things might not be as peachy as they seem. A new exclusive from Rolling Stone took statements from 11 employees—10 former, one current—and found just how bad things apparently were, with claims of overworking, underpaying, verbal abuse, bullying, and even racism.
One former employee said, “NBC is protecting the show because it’s their new money maker, but Kelly has no clue how unhappy her staff is.” While it’s good that Kelly isn’t part of the abuse, if she doesn’t know, that’s another issue in and of itself.
The person supposedly responsible for the work environment is Alex Duda. According to one former employee, she “has done this on every show she’s worked on.” Neither Duda nor NBC responded to Rolling Stone for comment. Many lodged HR complaints, but HR did nothing in response. Even in exit interviews, employees would be honest about the abuse, but the producers would continue to receive promotions.
Many employees reported deterioration in their mental health. One said they even needed to see a therapist for the first time in their life. Employees were allegedly retaliated against for making comments on race. Like suggesting the audience should be more diverse. Or suggesting the show speak up on the growth of anti-Asian hate crimes.
Many employees express doubt the show can ever change, with one saying, “There’s a culture of nonaccountability for some people.” Another expressed, “People shouldn’t be treated like this, especially when you’re working on a TV show that’s winning Emmys and bringing in millions of ad dollars.”
If all of this is true, it goes beyond a hostile work environment. It wouldn’t be the first time reality TV show staff have behaved in such a way, and it’s especially bad in talk TV in general, according to these reports.
TELL US – WHAT DO YOU MAKE OF THESE REPORTS? IS THERE ANYTHING VIEWERS CAN DO TO CHANGE THINGS?