AP – Janice Ogata/MediaPunch /IPX
Julie Chen Moonves revealed in an upcoming book that her exit from ‘The Talk’ on CBS was a result of the sexual misconduct allegations against her husband, then CBS CEO Les Moonves.
Chen, in her new book But First, God — set to be released on Tuesday — gives readers a behind-the-scenes look at the fallout from the 2018 scandal that hit her family and how her faith grew out of the struggle.
In 2018, Moonves was accused of sexual harassment and assault by six women. Moonves resigned from the company soon after and was ordered along with CBS, in 2022, to pay $30.5 million dollars to shareholders.
The CBs host stood by her husband, calling him “a kind, decent and moral human being,” and shortly after the accusations were made she announced her own departure from the network’s afternoon panel show, The Talk — where she had been a co-host for eight years.
At the time, the decision to leave appeared to be hers — as Chen explained in the announcement that she wanted to spend more time with family. But now, five years later, Chen reveals that she was forced out.
“It was a job that I loved going to, it just made my heart sing. It was my job co-hosting and moderating the CBS daytime talk show called ‘The Talk.’ In short: yes, I was collateral damage. The decision to leave the show was made for me,” Chen reveals in the audiobook.
Chen remembers receiving a call the night before the Season 9 premiere of the show.
She was told, “with my name and my husband’s name being in the headlines and all this chaos, two of my co-hosts called the powers at CBS and said, ‘If Julie shows up to work tomorrow, we’re not coming in.’ So, I was basically told, ‘Please don’t come back to work anymore,”” Chen revealed.
“After my husband and I left our jobs, I was a ball of mixed emotions and at the top of the list I was angry, I was frustrated, I felt robbed, and I felt wronged. I felt like so many people that I loved and trusted or thought were friends… wow, they did me so dirty,” Chen said.
Since her departure, Chen has continued to host the CBS show Big Brother.
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