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Amy Robach breaks her silence on David Muir's recent on-air controversy.
Robach, 51, spoke about her ex-colleague on the January 10 episode of her Amy & T.J. podcast, which she co-hosts with fellow journalist and boyfriend T.J. Holmes. The couple addressed Muir's "clothespin controversy," where he tried to enhance the appearance of his yellow, flame-retardant jacket by fastening it at the back with wooden clothespins during his on-site coverage of the Pacific Palisades fire in Los Angeles on January 8.
"When you have a massive tragedy unfolding behind you with flames, people's homes, belongings lives being lost, to be concerned about how you look seems like a slap in the face to the people dealing with the worst possible situation," said Robach, who previously worked with Muir at ABC News.
Robach continued by stating, "I understand the anger and the fact that they're hurling it at him because by seeing that clothespin, it looks like his focus was on himself instead of on the story he was covering."
Holmes agreed with Robach's critique and added, "You see this guy on TV discredited. There's no question it leaves a bad taste [in] the mouth of somebody who is going through what they're going through in L.A."
However, Robach and Holmes agreed that the hate Muir has been receiving has gone too far, with both detailing the pressure of live reporting.
"You don't even know what's happening to you, and someone could've made the decision of. 'Let me do this with the jacket.' We don't know," said Holmes. "But just a little context, the guy works his butt off. You don't like what he did, fine. It's just a lot to be piling on."
"I don't think he deserves the hate he's getting," added Robach. "I don't think that is fair or appropriate in any way – and especially from people who've never had to be on television every day where your image, your looks are constantly being critiqued or acknowledged so you might have a hyper-awareness about that."
Muir returned to the air on Thursday, January 9, with his flame-retardant jacket unclipped and looking much looser. Additional coverage showed the veteran journalist without his jacket on at all.
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