Gayle King

Michele Crowe/CBS via Getty Images

Gayle King is trending on Twitter and has drawn the ire of thousands after asking Lisa Leslie about sexual assault charges against Kobe Bryant.

"I don't think it's something that we should keep hanging over his legacy," Leslie told the CBS News anchor.

Rappers 50 Cent and Snoop Dogg have castigated King for trying to "tarnish" the NBA legend's reputation.

King defended herself by saying CBS News, without informing her, decided to share a "salacious" clip from a wide-ranging interview that is "jarring" when "taken out of context."

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Gayle King on Thursday defended herself against a swarm of vitriol that's been leveled at her over an interview with WNBA star Lisa Leslie in which the journalist asked about Kobe Bryant's rape allegations.

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The NBA icon and his 13-year-old daughter, Gianna Bryant, were among nine people who died on January 26 when a private helicopter crashed into the Calabasas hills, in Southern California, and exploded into flames.

The drama unfolded on Tuesday after CBS News aired the conversation between King and Leslie and shared a short clip on Twitter. The video went viral and sparked outrage.

In it, King, co-host of "CBS This Morning," talked about Bryant's complicated legacy, asking Leslie: "Is it complicated for you as a woman, as a WNBA player?"

"It's not complicated for me at all," Leslie replied, recalling going to clubs with Bryant but saying that he wasn't at all predatory toward women. "I just never have ever seen him being the kind of person that would do something to violate a woman or be aggressive in that way."

—CBS This Morning (@CBSThisMorning) February 4, 2020

King pushed back by saying that "as his friend, [Leslie] wouldn't see it."

"And that's possible," Leslie responded. "I just don't believe that."

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King then followed up by asking if it's "even a fair question to talk about" the charges, "considering he's no longer with us and that it was resolved" or is it "really part of his history."

"I think that the media should be more respectful at this time," Leslie said. "It's like if you had questions about it, you've had many years to ask him that. I don't think it's something that we should keep hanging over his legacy."

When King pointed out that the case was dismissed because the woman refused to testify, Leslie said simply: "And I think that that's how we should leave it."

Bryant was charged with sexual assault and false imprisonment in 2003 after being accused of rape by a 19-year-old hotel employee in Colorado. After a year of investigation, the woman decided against testifying in a trial and the criminal charges were dropped. Bryant did, however, settle a separate civil case over the allegations.

Maligning 'your people'

The backlash was instant and King began trending on Twitter. Rapper 50 Cent was among those who criticized her.

Lil Boosie responded in a profanity-laden post on Instagram.

As did Snoop Dogg, who accused King of being "way out of pocket" with her line of questioning.

"What do you gain from that?" he asked, adding, "We expect more from you Gayle. Don't you hang out with [Oprah Winfrey]? Why you attacking us? [We're] your people."

He also pointed to King and Winfrey being friends with and posing for pictures alongside a smiling Harvey Weinstein. Dozens of women have spoken out against the former prolific film producer, accusing him of rape, sexual assault and sexual abuse spanning almost 30 years.

Snoop Dogg censured King for trying to "tarnish" Bryant's reputation, saying, "Respect the family and back off!"

'I am mortified, I am embarrassed, and I am very angry'

In a pair of videos shared on Instagram and Twitter on Thursday, King tried to regain control of the narrative by blaming CBS News.

"If I had only seen the clip that you saw, I would be extremely angry with me too," she explained. "I am mortified, I am embarrassed, and I am very angry. Unbeknownst to me, my network put up a clip from a very wide-ranging interview, totally taken out of context, and when you see it that way, it's very jarring."

Network officials apparently recommended that King "say nothing, just let it go," she said. They told her that "people will troll [her] but it'll be over in a couple of days."

That's not "good enough for me," King said, stressing that it's important for people to hear from her that the interview had featured commentary on everything from Bryant's career to his sense of humor and the impact he was having on female basketball players. His sexual assault charges were only a part of it, she said.

"I wanted to get Lisa's take on it as a friend who knew him well — what she thought, where that should stand," King said. "It was very powerful when she looked me in the eye, as a member of the media, to say it's time for the media to leave it alone and to back off ... And I insisted that that part be in the interview because I thought it put a nice button on that part of the conversation."

The interview in its entirety received a great reaction, according to King, who noted that Leslie too "was OK with the interview."

"For the network to take the most salacious part, when taken out of context, and put it up online, for people who didn't see the whole interview is very upsetting to me and is something I'm going to have to deal with them," she said, promising a "very intense discussion about that."

King noted that she had met Bryant on "many social occasions" and described having a "friendly relationship" with someone who was "very kind and very warm."

"I too am mourning his loss, just like everybody else," she said. "I still am shocked by it. It's tragic and untimely and the last thing I would want to do is disparage him at this particular time. I hope people understand that."

Read more:

Kobe Bryant had an illustrious NBA career, but his off-court legacy is complicated

Lakers fans paid tribute to NBA legend Kobe Bryant by leaving more than 1,300 basketballs outside the Staples Center

Gianna Bryant's school retired her No. 2 jersey in an emotional memorial ceremony

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