Jussie Smollett was a major topic of discussion the entire month of February. Initially, fans were pouring out their hearts in support of Jussie. When he appeared on Good Morning America with Robin Roberts, fans were still standing by his side. But just one day after the interview, the Chicago Police Department revealed perplexing details about the case that suggested Jussie Smollet may have orchestrated his own attack.
As expected, the scathing reports sparked a media firestorm and fans were no longer convinced he was as innocent as he initially claimed. Apparently, Robin Roberts reportedly feels the same way. According to The Jasmine Brand , Robin Roberts is finally speaking out about the interview and she’s admitting she actually felt some kind of way about the situation.
In fact, Robin has revealed she had reservations about interviewing Jussie Smollett before the Chicago Police Department revealed its speculation of the Empire star’s alleged actions.
“I’ll be completely honest, I was like, ‘I don’t know if I want to do the interview or not.’ I said, ‘I don’t want to sit down with him if he’s going to lawyer up.’ And then I was told, ‘He wants to speak with you,’ [because] he was outraged by people making assumptions about whether it had happened or not.”
Robin Roberts went on to reveal she ultimately decided to conduct the interview because Jussie reportedly planned to reveal things about the attack he hadn’t spoken about publicly. As a veteran journalist, Robin felt the discussion would be “newsworthy” if Jussie would be offering more details.
“They said, ‘He wants to say things that he has not said,’ and I’m like, ‘As a journalist, as a newsperson, this is newsworthy, he’s going to go on record for the first time, yes I’ll do the interview.’”
Robin Roberts also shared her perspective of the situation from the stance of a gay person. As a gay woman, she explained the obstacle she faced as a member of the LGBT community.
“I’m a black gay woman, he’s a black gay man. He’s saying that there’s a hate crime, so if I’m too hard, then my LGBT community is going to say, ‘You don’t believe a brother.’
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Despite more than 20 years in journalism, Robin Roberts has admitted the interview with Jussie Smollett was one of the most difficult she’s ever conducted.
“It was one of the most challenging interviews I’ve ever had to do.”
Although Jussie still maintains his innocence, he’s being charged with filing a false police report. He is scheduled to appear in court again on March 14.
