“The Talk” host Sheryl Underwood, speaking publicly for the first time since a racially charged on-air exchange with former co-host Sharon Osbourne last month, said she and Osbourne have not spoken since the show went on hiatus two weeks ago.
In a three-part podcast series, “Sharon Walks Away,” Underwood, who is Black, said she was “disappointed” by Osbourne’s vehement defense during the show’s March 10 broadcast of British TV personality Piers Morgan and his incessant criticism of Meghan Markle, the Duchess of Sussex, whose mother is African American. Osbourne and Morgan are both white.
“Have you spoken to Sharon Osbourne since the last time you were on set together?” podcast co-host James Kelley asked Underwood, NBC News reported.
“No, OK, I’ve been looking through my phone,” she said. “No. I can go back as far as I can go. No.”
Although NBC News could not confirm its authenticity, Osbourne spokesperson Howard Bragman shared a screenshot of a March 12 text message she apparently sent to Underwood apologizing for her on-air behavior.
“The Talk,” which was placed on hiatus on March 16 while parent network CBS investigated the incident, is set to return on April 12. Osbourne left the daytime gabfest after CBS concluded that her behavior “did not align with our values for a respectful workplace.”