Gayle King tells James Corden she's worried about her son William's safety, has asked him to look 'friendlier'
Gayle King was on Wednesday night's episode of 'The Late Late Show with James Corden'. Joining Corden on a video call from her New York City apartment, King told the host about her quarantine experience. "I feel trapped like a rat with me, myself and I," joked King, adding that at this point she even misses the people that she doesn't like. The CBS journalist was quick to add that she's healthy and happy and lucky to continue doing the job that she loves.
A couple of days ago, King was seen leading the CBS News Special titled 'Justice For All', which touched upon racism and police brutality. Corden commended the show, calling it informative and helpful in a world full of sad news. He then asked King if she believes that the country and its people could be going through actual change, referring to the country-wide protests following the death of George Floyd. To this King said that everything happening right now seems different. She added that Floyd's death has sparked movements not only across the US but also throughout the world and it's something that has happened for the very first time. She also spoke about the "alarming" incident where a white woman called the police to Central Park alleging harassment by Christian Cooper, an African-American man who was birdwatching at the park. The woman called the cops just because he had asked her to leash her dog.
King also said that she worries about her 33-year-old son, William Bumpus Jr, who lives in Los Angeles, saying that things could go wrong any second while he's out walking his dog. King added that she has advised her son to trade his black bandanas for pecan ones to look friendlier. Expressing hurt over all the recent incidents, King noted that the only positive in this situation is that everything is available on video for the world to see. She added that an honest conversation needs to be had about what is it about black people that scares white people.
Corden later asked King how does CBS choose what to report. To this, King said that they hold pride in their honest reporting and leave it to the viewers to decide what to believe. She also said that their viewers are "very informed and smart" and when President Donald Trump brands media houses as fake, she never for a moment felt that he speaks about CBS because they check the credibility of the news before reporting them and that they'd rather be "right and second than being first and wrong".