Joy Behar Pulls the Veil Back on Matt’s Lauer’s Office Lock Button

Joy Behar says the public shouldn’t be so shocked by one of the disturbing details of Matt Lauer‘s sexual misconduct scandal.

The View host told TMZ that “a lot of people have the button under the desk, apparently, they told me. A lot of executives have that. So when you go into their office and they want to be not disturbed, they press the button and the door closes.”

She told the news outlet that she “didn’t know” about the rumors surrounding Lauer’s behavior and that “I liked Matt at one point.”

“There were rumors, but the rumors were about consensual [sex], not this.” she said.

A source with knowledge of the former anchor’s firing told PEOPLE that Lauer did not see the instance of sexual misconduct that led to his firing in the same way as his unnamed alleged victim. In fact, “in [Lauer’s] mind, this had been a consensual affair. And a long-term one at that.”

Lauer was fired from NBC after a female colleague filed a “detailed complaint” with the network accusing Lauer of “inappropriate sexual behavior in the workplace.” Hours after NBC announced Lauer’s firing, two more women came forward to the network with sexual harassment claims against Lauer. That same day, Variety published a report with allegations of sexual misconduct against Lauer, ranging from accusations of sexting or buying adult toys to graphic sexual assault.

Sources told Variety on Friday that Lauer will not receive any kind of settlement money from the network, which did not comment on the report. An NBC senior source told CNN first that Lauer “will not be paid past his last day at work.”

The long-time Today Show anchor was reportedly earning between $20 million and $25 million a year. Lauer was signed through 2018 after reaching a new deal last year.

On Thursday, it was reported that Lauer’s attorneys were trying to secure a $30 million payoff in the wake of his firing. That would cover the rest of his 2017 salary and the 2018 salary he was expected to earn.