Sharon Osbourne Responds to 'The Talk' Co-Host Holly Robinson Peete's 'Ghetto' Claims

Sharon Osbourne has been under fire over her defense of Piers Morgan's recent comments about [...]

By Stephen Andrew

Sharon Osbourne has been under fire over her defense of Piers Morgan's recent comments about Meghan Markle, and now she is responding to claims from her former The Talk co-host Holly Robinson Peete that she referred to the ex-host as "ghetto." Peete, who left the show in 2011, took to Twitter to claim Osbourne "complained" that she was "too 'ghetto' for The Talk." She added that soon after she (Peete) was "gone."

"I bring this up now [because] I was mortified watching the disrespectful condescending tone she took [with] her [co-host] who remained calm [and] respectful because...she HAD to," Peete added. In response, Osbourne shared an email that she claims was sent to her from Peete following the former hosts' firing. The email seems to paint a picture of civility between the two, as Peete stated she'd attempted to contact Osbourne by phone "a few times." She also thanks Osbourne, in the letter, for "honoring" an invite to America's Got Talent for some of her family members.

Additionally, Peete appears comfortable enough to confide in Osbourne that she believed CBS was "doing behind the scenes damage" to her career. Peete also mentioned other former co-hosts, including Julie Chen, who she claimed was spreading "venomous lies" about her which could potentially have led to "legal action," she stated. Peete does not appear to have responded to the details of the email at this time.

Osbourne's trouble started after she defended Morgan for his "opinion" on the interview that Markle and Prince Harry did with Oprah earlier this month. Among other comments, during an episode of Good Morning Britain, he claimed the couple was "disloyal" to the Royal family, and added, "Prince Charles has been bankrolling that couple for the last five years." After being confronted by GMB co-host Alex Beresford, Morgan stormed off the set and subsequently quit the show entirely.

Osbourne took to Twitter to defend Morgan, writing, "I am with you. I stand by you. People forget that you're paid for your opinion and that you're just speaking your truth." This caused major backlash for Osbourne, as did her further tearful defense of Morgan during an episode of The Talk.

She later apologized for her defense of Morgan, writing in part, "To anyone of color that I offended and/or to anyone that feels confused or let down by what I said, I am truly sorry." The Talk is currently on break for an unspecified amount of time while an internal investigation is done.

Disclosure: PopCulture is owned by CBS Interactive, a division of ViacomCBS.

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