TJ Holmes and Amy Robach at iHeartRadio 102.7 KIIS FM’s Jingle Ball on December 01, 2023 in Los Angeles.
Jesse Grant/Getty Images for iHeartRadio
A year after they were first suspended by ABC News after going public with their private relationship, Amy Roebach and DJ Holmes are speaking out about what happened.
The pair discussed their relationship and subsequent departure from ABC on the first episode of their new iHeartMedia podcast. Amy & T.J
Holmes and Robach, of course, were co-hosts GMA3An afternoon spinoff of the ABC morning show Good Morning America. About a year ago, a tabloid revealed that the two were in a relationship, and ABC News President Kim Godwin announced that the network was “temporarily” being fired from the show as the network responded.
Ultimately, ABC parted ways with Robach and Holmes in January of this year, with a spokesperson saying “we all agreed it was in the best interest of everyone that they move on.”
“Amy and DJ, the best way to sum us up is that we lost jobs we loved because we loved each other,” Holmes said. On the podcast tuesday “That’s the bottom line.”
One of the name ideas for the podcast, Holmes said, was “‘scandal-less,’ because it’s not a scandal.”
Robach and Holmes said several “major” news outlets decided not to report on their relationship when they learned they were divorcing, but the tabloid report led to ABC News’ fateful decision to suspend them.
“Each of us got a phone call from our bosses saying they’d made the decision — and they said again, as a matter of fact, that we hadn’t violated any company policy — but they thought it was best because we’d become a distraction. If they took us off the air temporarily, let things be quiet,” Robach said. remembered. “I remember saying … Now if you put us on the air it’s going to be a story, please don’t do it.”
“That was the morning we knew we weren’t going back to that network,” Holmes added. “We know the phone call sealed it because you can’t come back from it.”
“I was sick to my stomach because we knew what was coming when that announcement was made,” Robach continued.
Robach said their plan was to finalize their divorce and then tell ABC management and the public they were a couple, but the tabloid report forced their hand. Holmes added that some media had framed them as “adulterers”.
“In January we thought, we’re going to go in and explain to management that we’re a couple … and we’ve already talked about doing it,” Robach recalled. “Before the films came out, we thought: Should we tell them what’s going on? And we thought, ‘Let’s clean up these divorces and do it later.’ We do.
“If we had made reports about the divorce and people found out we were dating, they would have raised some eyebrows and said, ‘Oh, well, that’s still an interesting topic,'” Holmes added. The story is paramount when it can be told. It’s now a major story in terms of the brand we’re connected to. That’s a big, big deal. We knew it was going to be a big deal.
But Holmes added that she didn’t initially think their relationship would rise to the level of a national news story because she admitted it because they were in a relationship. GMA He should have been more clear about things.
“In that world, connected to the show we’re connected to, it’s a fascinating fairy tale,” Holmes said. “I don’t think we ever thought about it that anyone would give a damn about what we were doing.”
