Whoopi Goldberg Defends Janet Jackson Amid Kamala Harris Comment Backlash

Ana Navarro said on “The View” that Janet Jackson “spread misinformation” when she said to The Guardian in a viral interview that she was once told Kamala Harris is not Black. Jackson earned widespread backlash for the ill-informed comment.

“Look, I think Janet Jackson — like every other American, whether you’re a celebrity or not — has a right to endorse, support, or not support whomever they want,” Navarro said. “She’s got every right to not like Kamala Harris if she wants to. What she did was spread misinformation. And I think it’s very irresponsible, when you have a platform the way Janet Jackson does, to use that platform carelessly, to spread misinformation based on a racist allegation by Donald Trump.”

Whoopi Goldberg wasn’t as quick to slam Jackson, asking viewers instead to show the singer some grace. The EGOT winner admitted herself that she has spread incorrect information in the past and called it a “pain in the butt” when celebrities are asked to speak immediately on current events.

“Sometimes people get it wrong and they’re wrong! They made a mistake, they were wrong. It happens,” Goldberg said. “Anybody who says it doesn’t happen to every one of us, multiracial or not, we all do it. So okay, a little grace for the girl. A little grace for the girl.”

In her interview with The Guardian, Jackson spoke about the upcoming election and said the following about Harris: “Well, you know what they supposedly said? She’s not Black. That’s what I heard. That she’s Indian.’”

When informed that Harris is both Black and Indian, Jackson pushed back and asserted that the presidential nominee’s father is neither.

“Her father’s white. That’s what I was told. I mean, I haven’t watched the news in a few days,” she said. “I was told that they discovered her father was white.”

Jackson has yet to issue a follow-up statement on the controversial remarks. Although an apology circulated a few days after the the interview’s publication, Variety confirmed it was not authorized by Jackson or anyone on her team.