Gayle King airs, then clears the air, about Oprah Winfrey’s hospitalization
“CBS Mornings” anchor and relatable bestie Gayle King confirms Oprah Winfrey is on the mend after hospitalization.
We all want people in our lives who will positively speak of us in rooms we’re not in — and Gayle King is definitely one of those people. The “CBS Mornings” anchor had to clear the air this week after potentially spilling the beans that Oprah Winfrey had been hospitalized due to stomach issues.
On Tuesday, while attempting to explain Winfrey’s absence from an interview about Oprah’s Book Club’s latest pick, “Familiaris,” by David Wroblewski, on “CBS Mornings,” King explained that her longtime friend was extremely sick.
“She had some kind of stomach thing, stomach flu, stuff was coming out of both ends,” King said, per USA Today. “I won’t get too graphic. But needless to say, she ended up in the hospital (with) dehydration (and) had to get an IV.”
Later that same day, King followed up on Instagram with a clip of her clearing the air with Winfrey. Firstly, King wanted to make clear she did not say “hospitalized.”
“I did say that you had a stomach something, [it] was coming out of both sides, which it was,” King stated in the clip.
“I was in the emergency room, I was so dehydrated,” Winfrey responded. “I had a dry mouth and I couldn’t keep enough water down to get hydrated, so I went to the emergency room for that, and that’s just it.”
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Winfrey, who noted five people in her household were also sick with the same illness, said she wasn’t quite feeling back to 100%, “But I’m on my way to 100.”
In addition to clearing up any concern for the media mogul, King explained why she’d shared the news in the first place.
“The point I was trying to make, America, is that it had to be something that would keep her from getting on a plane and coming. That’s the only point I was trying to make,” King added.
To her point, this was the first-ever book club pick Winfrey had missed.
“I was too weak to get on the plane,” she confirmed.
In true bestie fashion, King wasn’t trying to be messy with her friend’s personal business; she was simply trying to speak up for her friend in her own way. After King first made the announcement on “CBS Mornings,” many began to worry. Some wondered if Winfrey had been experiencing complications from Ozempic. After the pair set the record straight, many weighing in on social media found humor and relatability in the situation. The next day, King doubled down on being Winfrey’s unofficial messenger, wearing a black T-shirt to work bearing the message “Oprah is FINE! Thank you for asking.” on the front and “She appreciates the concern!” on the back. Ultimately, all parties involved are just happy Winfrey is on the mend.
