The ladies of "The View" apologized Wednesday for criticizing Miss Colorado Kelley Johnson, who gave a monologue about her profession as a nurse during the talent portion of the Miss America contest on Sunday.
As E! Online reported, Johnson appeared in her scrubs, with a stethoscope draped around her neck.
"There was a girl who wrote her own monologue and I was like 'Turn the volume up, this is going be amazing, let's listen.' She came out in a nurse's uniform and basically read her emails out loud and shockingly did not win," co-host Michelle Collins said snarkily on Monday's show. "I swear to God it was hilarious."
"Why does she have a doctor's stethoscope on?" co-host Joy Behar asked, not realizing that nurses use the medical tool regularly.
The comments prompted almost immediate backlash online, with nurses and their advocates taking to social media under the banner of the #NursesUnite hashtag.
"Reminder to the ladies of the view, my NURSE stethoscope may help save their lives one day,"
wrote one poster, for example.
Many online commenters called for an apology. While not an outright apology, "The View" panelists did offer some clarifying words on Wednesday.
"I want to say, we love nurses, if you're watching, we adore you, respect you. Clap for the nurses," Collins said during the show. "You are wonderful and the most compassionate people."
"I was looking at a Miss America tape and there's a woman wearing like an outfit," Behar said. "And I'm thinking, 'Is she in costume?' I didn't know she was a nurse. I'm used to seeing them in gowns and bathing suits. It is not like I was trying to be funny. It was stupid and inattentive on my part."
© 2024 Newsmax. All rights reserved.