The TV personality, Julie Chen, left the daytime talk show in 2018 amid allegations of sexual misconduct involving her husband, former CBS executive Les Moonves.
Julie Chen Alleges Betrayal
Julie Chen Moonves left her post at the talk show in 2018, after a total of 12 women accused her husband of sexual assault and harassment. Moonves told The New Yorker that he recognized three of the sexual encounters detailed in Ronan Farrow‘s New Yorker exposé but said they were consensual. He did not specify which ones. He then resigned from his position at CBS.
Julie Chen announced her exit from The Talk days later, stating on the show that she needed “to spend more time at home with her husband and young son.” She continued to host Big Brother on CBS, however, and began using “Moonves” as part of her last name on the show.
Julie Chen Moonves talks about her new memoir, opens up about leaving "The Talk" and the sexual misconduct allegations against husband Les Moonves. @jujuchangabc reports. https://t.co/T5R9yD9hwX pic.twitter.com/phCt2FXHQF
— Good Morning America (@GMA) September 18, 2023
She addressed her exit on Good Morning America that morning, where she was promoting her new audiobook, “But First, God.” In the book, she reportedly claimed her decision to leave the talk show was one made for her.
In her discussion, she revealed, “Yeah, she never revealed that until ‘But First, God.’ That was a hard time,” she shared. “She felt stabbed in the back. She was, you know?”
She went on to add that she turned to her faith to get through that period and work on herself. “She doesn’t know if she could’ve reconciled if she didn’t have God in her life,” she explained.
“Julie Chen, before she found God, was a self-absorbed, career-minded, vain, gossipy, fun to be with, but probably kind of a shallow person,” she continued. “Julie Chen Moonves, who now knows the Lord, is someone who wants to help others, who wants to look at everyone with a soft heart.”
In the book, Chen Moonves also opens up about informing their son Charlie, who is 14 years old, about the allegations against his father.
She told him that there were reports that were false about their family, keeping it simple. She said, “So if he ever heard anything or read anything, he should come to them first. He knew the family and who they were, and she encouraged him not to let anyone shake that.”
Chen Moonves appeared slightly less comfortable when asked by GMA’s Juju Chang whether she had inquired about the allegations with her husband and why references to the #MeToo movement were not included in her book.
She responded to the former question, saying, “That’s not what she’s here to talk about. But of course. Yeah. She knows her husband. You know? She knows her husband.” As for the latter query, she added, “She thinks that’s getting off track from But First, God. People go through difficult times in the world and in their lives. Hers are not over just because she found Christ. She believes the focus should remain on Him.”
Chen Moonves’s audiobook was scheduled to be released on Tuesday, September 19.
