Gayle King’s Selfie with Jesse Watters Sparks Criticism

On Monday, Gayle King shared a selfie taken on a cross-country flight with Jesse Watters from Fox News, which triggered a wave of backlash from liberals online.

King, who co-hosts “CBS Morning,” posted the photo of the two smiling together, making light of their seating arrangement on the four-hour flight. She humorously noted that they were “TV people from competing networks.”

In her post, she wrote, “Speaking on behalf of @jesewatters here: I hope you all had a great time! Hi Jesse…I’m saving your number!”

However, this casual tone didn’t sit well with many progressives on social media, who labeled King as out of touch and overly accommodating.

“Gail, this is not right,” one user on Bluesky expressed.

Rapper Talib Kweli chimed in with, “No, this is not Gail.”

Another user declared, “Nazi Jesse is doing nothing but lies!”

Many comments piled up, criticizing King further. One read, “Oprah’s tone-deaf best friend doesn’t read the room,” while another simply responded, “Wow.” A third commenter stated, “There are no principles. I wouldn’t have expected anything else from her.”

Some implied that King was trying to gain favor with Bari Weiss, the new CBS News chief, who seems to have plans for significant changes at the network.

The backlash came at a tumultuous time for King, as speculation about her future at CBS has increased since Weiss’s arrival. There are uncertainties surrounding her prominent position, especially since her $13 million to $15 million contract is due to expire in May.

Insiders have hinted that Weiss may rethink the morning and evening lineups, which could potentially push King aside.

This recent selfie also reminded people of a 2019 incident where Watters mistakenly identified King as “Good Morning America” anchor Robin Roberts, an error for which he later apologized on air.

The Post has sought comments from both CBS News and Fox News regarding the situation.