From late-night talk show hosts to news anchors, we're diving into the controversial careers of TV personalities who spectacularly fell from grace. Prepare for a wild ride through scandals, ethical breaches, and reputation-destroying moments that shocked the entertainment world.
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00:00Hello, hello, my name is Jay Leno, and let it hereby be known that I'm taking over all the shows in late night.
00:09Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're looking at 10 television show hosts who ruined their legacies with scandals and poor performances.
00:16If you're watching because you love me, thank you. If you're watching because you don't love me, welcome.
00:24James Corden
00:25Last week, there were stories about me being banned from a restaurant.
00:30We're not entirely sure if James Corden lost respect or if he just never had any in the first place.
00:35Corden has hosted a number of award shows, but he is perhaps best known for The Late Late Show, which he presented between 2015 and 2023.
00:43Despite his continued success and prevalence, Corden's public reputation has plummeted.
00:47Allegations of rude behavior have followed him for years, including an incident in 2022 which saw him being banned from a New York restaurant.
00:55Look, when you make a mistake, you've got to take responsibility, so I thought I would, if it's okay, I would share with you what happened.
01:02Others perceive him as being annoyingly arrogant, and he's been accused of stealing jokes from other comedians, including Ricky Gervais.
01:08And some just don't enjoy his style of showmanship, believing that it is inauthentic and overly rehearsed.
01:14When the presenters are up here, and when the recipients are receiving their awards, don't stand at the back of the stage with your hands in your pockets, looking around as though you wished you were anywhere but here.
01:28Oh, you couldn't be more wrong, sir.
01:31Dr. Phil
01:32Over the course of 21 years in a high-profile position, you have been involved in a few controversies.
01:38Despite running one of the most successful talk shows in TV history, Dr. Phil has long attracted criticism for, well, lots of things.
01:46He's known for harboring a blunt and confrontational approach to guests, which some interpret as dismissive.
01:51He's also not a licensed psychologist as of 2006, which many see as a huge stain on his professional reputation.
01:58Some folks said that you exploited her mental condition. Do you regret what you did there?
02:04But perhaps worst of all, Dr. Phil and his production team have faced major ethical concerns and have been accused of exploitative behavior.
02:11For example, interviewing the unwell Shelley Duvall for ratings or providing alcohol to struggling guests in order to boost drama.
02:18Basically, he could care less about treating people. It's all for the TV.
02:23Friday on an all-new Dr. Phil.
02:25The Shining's Shelley Duvall, from red carpet to near recluse.
02:30I loved Robin Williams.
02:31I don't think he's dead.
02:32Where do you think he is?
02:33Shapeshifting.
02:34Do you see him?
02:35Yes, yes.
02:36Jeremy Kyle.
02:37It has a reputation for confrontation and controversy where participants face off to air their most personal problems.
02:45This English broadcaster hosted the Jeremy Kyle show between 2005 and 2019, attracting widespread criticism along the way.
02:52The program was accused of turning personal struggles into public spectacle, often exploiting vulnerable people and turning them into national laughingstocks.
03:01Kyle himself was also infamous for his aggressive interview style, often being extremely confrontational with guests and sometimes even outright humiliating them.
03:09I would question the amount of help and support that actually comes out of appearing on a show like the Jeremy Kyle show in terms of the fact that I wonder what it's like for them going back into their everyday lives and having aired their difficulties in public in such a way and on such a program.
03:27But the final straw for everyone, including the network, came in 2019 when a guest took his own life shortly after appearing on the show.
03:34A coroner later exonerated the producers, but the backlash was still enormous and the show was swiftly cancelled.
03:40And with that, what little respect Kyle had evaporated.
03:43While he feels that appearing on the show exacerbated, may have exacerbated his feelings towards his relationship with his partner deteriorating, he doesn't feel that it was a direct cause of Steve Diamond taking his own life.
03:58Brian Williams.
03:59And what the New York Times and the Washington Post reported last night was that, as you said, there's a number of examples of embellishments that haven't been made publicly known, but have been found by NBC.
04:10And my sources are telling me the same thing, that at least 10 instances of exaggerations have been found.
04:15Unlike the others so far on this list, Brian Williams was a respectable journalist, having worked for NBC since 1993 and winning a number of awards.
04:23But that goodwill was ripped away in 2015 when it was found that Williams had greatly exaggerated his experiences in Iraq.
04:30For years, he recounted a story where his military helicopter was hit by an RPG and forced to make an emergency landing.
04:37However, military personnel later came forward and clarified that Williams was in a different helicopter that was never under direct fire.
04:44Sorry, I don't remember you being on my aircraft. I do remember you walking up about an hour after we had landed to ask me what had happened.
04:51Other crew members confirmed this discrepancy to the military magazine Stars and Stripes.
04:57As a leading anchor for a major news network, Williams was expected to maintain high journalistic integrity, and this incident eroded public trust.
05:04He was subsequently fired from NBC Nightly News and demoted to MSNBC.
05:09His account does seem to differ from what crew members and the lead chopper told Stars and Stripes that Williams was, quote,
05:16nowhere near that aircraft or two other Chinooks flying in the formation that took fire.
05:21Jay Leno.
05:22He released a statement today that said, I won't participate in the destruction of the Tonight Show.
05:27Oh, man.
05:29Fortunately, though, I will.
05:32I'll burn it down if I have to.
05:34Despite his long career in show business, Jay Leno is now just the guy who screwed over Conan.
05:39Leno left the Tonight Show in 2009 and was replaced by Conan O'Brien.
05:43In return, he got his own primetime talk show.
05:46However, it struggled in the ratings.
05:48So NBC decided to reshuffle their lineup, moving Leno to the late night slot and pushing Conan past midnight.
05:54Why'd you want to do that?
05:57Conan rejected this plan and chose to leave the network rather than capitulate.
06:01You know, ladies and gentlemen, are they closing a curtain or something there?
06:05No, I didn't think so.
06:06OK, we didn't rehearse today because we didn't care.
06:09He got a hefty severance package.
06:11Leno was reinstated to the Tonight Show and his reputation tanked.
06:15Many people defend Leno, arguing that this was more NBC's fault than his.
06:19But he still lost a ton of public favor and was widely regarded as a backstabber.
06:23All of his friends got together and had a party.
06:25They had a cake and Jay, this is an interesting point,
06:28Jay cut the cake with the same knife he stuck in Conan's back.
06:34Paula Deen.
06:35Paula, what about the very serious allegation,
06:39the very serious allegation of you using the N-word?
06:43Hot Buddha in hell, Sam.
06:46Which N-word is she talking about?
06:48There's a whole bunch of N-words.
06:51Well, the bad one.
06:52Black nutrition.
06:55Having hosted a number of popular TV shows,
06:57Paula Deen is one of the most prominent chefs in America.
07:00Or she was.
07:02The downfall began in 2013,
07:04when Deen was sued by a former employee for racial and sexual discrimination.
07:08During the resulting deposition,
07:10Deen acknowledged having used the N-word in the past.
07:13It wasn't just the use of the word that spurred controversy,
07:15but her nonchalant attitude,
07:17answering of course when asked if she had ever used it.
07:19In newly released transcripts from her deposition last month,
07:22Deen is asked, quote,
07:23have you ever used the N-word yourself?
07:26Yes, of course, she said.
07:27She lost her television show
07:29and several endorsement deals in the fallout.
07:31And to make matters worse,
07:32her apologies were deemed insincere and made into jokes.
07:36Deen has sought to rebuild her brand throughout the years,
07:38but she has never regained the mainstream success she once had.
07:41More fallout after her admission that she used racial slurs in the past.
07:45A series of awkward apologies
07:46has not stopped sponsors from dropping her.
07:48The latest Walmart and Caesars casinos, Piers Morgan.
07:52Even by the standards of a show in which confrontation is nothing new,
07:56this between two of its presenters this morning was extraordinary.
08:01Things started off so well for Piers Morgan.
08:03Rupert Murdoch personally appointed him editor of News of the World
08:06when he was just 29,
08:07making him the youngest editor of a British newspaper in over 50 years.
08:11It was all downhill from there.
08:13Morgan quickly became known for his strong and divisive opinions,
08:17and his tenure at the Daily Mirror ended in scandal in 2004,
08:20resulting in his termination.
08:22If you hire a rottweiler for its ability to bite,
08:31you can't then be shocked when it actually bites.
08:36He was also fired from Good Morning Britain in 2021
08:39after rudely dismissing Meghan Markle's mental health,
08:42showing a repeated lack of journalistic integrity.
08:45And speaking of that,
08:46Morgan has been accused of being implicit
08:48in the News International phone hacking scandal,
08:50which saw the newspaper illegally accessing private voicemails to find stories.
09:10It's amazing how fast Ellen's reputation dropped.
09:13One day, she was an icon,
09:15having paved the way for LGBT acceptance in mainstream TV
09:18and hosting one of the most popular talk shows of its day.
09:21The next, she was a social pariah.
09:23In mid-2020, several employees accused DeGeneres of harboring a toxic workplace
09:28with instances of racism, sexual misconduct, and intimidation.
09:44Employees alleged that speaking up about the unfair treatment
09:47led to retaliation or termination,
09:49and some even reported being fired after taking medical leave.
09:52And many criticized Ellen herself,
09:54claiming that she was unbelievably rude and condescending behind the scenes.
09:58Her ratings plummeted, the talk show was cancelled,
10:01and Ellen eventually left Hollywood for England.
10:14And we are grappling with a dilemma
10:16that so many people have faced these past few weeks.
10:19How do you reconcile your love for someone
10:22with the revelation that they have behaved badly?
10:25And I don't know the answer to that.
10:27There was a time when Matt Lauer was the name in reporting.
10:30He began hosting Today in 1994 and remained there for over 20 years.
10:34However, his tenure came to an end in 2017
10:38after getting hit with MeToo allegations.
10:40Like many, Lauer was accused of sexual misconduct
10:43when a colleague came forward claiming
10:45that Lauer engaged in inappropriate behavior towards her.
10:48In 2017, as the MeToo movement was gaining momentum,
10:51Brooke Nevels finally told Meredith Vieira
10:54what happened to her during the Olympics.
10:56Meredith, she says, was distraught
10:58and advised her to go to Human Resources here at NBC Studios.
11:03Within 24 hours, Matt Lauer was fired.
11:06NBC conducted an internal investigation
11:09and found that Lauer's alleged misconduct was not an isolated incident
11:12and he was fired on November 29, 2017.
11:15His career in journalism was effectively brought to an end
11:18as no major networks or organizations sought to rehire him.
11:21He also faced personal repercussions
11:23with his wife of 21 years filing for divorce.
11:26The woman whose accusations helped end his career is going public.
11:30And we should warn you details of her account
11:33may be too graphic for some viewers.
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11:51Jimmy Savile
11:52Last year, Jimmy Savile's coffin was driven past Leeds General Hospital
11:57where he'd worked as a volunteer porter.
12:00Hospital staff joined the crowds,
12:02saying their goodbyes and applauding him.
12:05How things have changed.
12:07To see that Jimmy Savile lost respect is a massive understatement.
12:11He once had a ton, hosting both Top of the Pops and Jim'll Fix It
12:15while also doing extensive charity work with British hospitals.
12:18But therein lay a very dark secret.
12:21Following his death, it was discovered that Savile was a serial sex offender
12:25abusing hundreds of people throughout the last half century.
12:28Savile raised millions for Stoke Mandeville Hospital in Buckinghamshire.
12:32But here, too, stories are emerging
12:34of nurses telling children to pretend to be asleep to avoid his attentions.
12:39These events occurred in said hospitals, schools,
12:42and the BBC studios, among other places.
12:45The scandals severely damaged the reputations not just of Savile
12:48but the BBC and the National Health Service,
12:51both of which allegedly ignored or dismissed the claims of abused individuals.
12:55It also led to legal reforms, and most of Savile's honours were stripped.
12:59The BBC is a trusted, and I would say worldwide, brand.
13:04Particularly people in this country trust whatever the BBC tells them.
13:08Now, with what's happened with Sir Jimmy Savile,
13:10it means that trust has been completely undermined.
13:12Did you lose respect for these hosts?
13:14Let us know in the comments below.
13:16I know that I'm in a position of privilege and power,
13:19and I realise that with that comes responsibility,
13:21and I take responsibility for what happens at my show.