The Kelly Clarkson Show has always appeared to viewers to be an uplifting environment, with its host delivering optimistic messages, loud laughs and some great Kellyoke covers for her audience. However, according to a new report, all may not be as it seems. Several former employees have spoken out about being “traumatized” by the working conditions on Kelly Clarkson’s Emmy-winning talk show — seemingly unbeknownst to the host herself — as they said they were overworked, underpaid and bullied by producers behind the scenes.
Rolling Stone spoke to 10 former employees and one current employee, who all asked to remain anonymous, about the conditions they experienced on The Kelly Clarkson Show, which led many of them to leave what they called a toxic environment. One source — a veteran of the entertainment industry who has worked on a number of shows — called this one “by far the worst experience I’ve ever had in my entire life.” They reportedly sought help from a psychiatrist due to bullying and intimidation from the producers, saying:
It deterred me from wanting to work in daytime ever again. When I say I was traumatized, I was really traumatized.
The current and former employees, however, were adamant that they didn’t think Kelly Clarkson had any idea of how bad the lower-level employees were being treated, as one described going up to the roof to cry, and another saying they would regularly become physically ill and vomit due to anxiety. The Voice coach had “no clue,” according to one ex-employee, while another said:
Kelly is fantastic. She is a person who never treats anyone with anything but dignity and is incredibly appreciative. I would be shocked if she knew. I’d be floored if she knew the staff wasn’t getting paid for two weeks of Christmas hiatus. The Kelly that I interacted with and that everyone knows would probably be pretty aghast to learn that.
The sources, rather, named executive producer and showrunner Alex Duda as the source of the toxicity, saying she shields Kelly Clarkson from knowing what is happening behind the scenes. Duda, who was previously the EP for Steve Harvey and The Tyra Banks Show, is accused of yelling and cursing at employees and putting them in uncomfortable positions. One former staffer said they were reprimanded for asking how anti-Asian hate crimes would be addressed on the show, saying they were bullied and left out of future meetings. One source continued:
I think Alex Duda’s a monster. I have a friend who’s an executive producer who warned me about taking this job, because apparently she has done this on every show she’s worked on.
This report comes on the heels of confirmation that The Kelly Clarkson Show is moving production from Los Angeles to New York City — with staffers saying they were not informed of details of the move until Alex Duda sent an email two minutes before the news went public in the media, Rolling Stone reported. Production of the daytime talk show was reportedly supposed to continue through May 20, but due to the WGA Writers Strike, which began May 2, employees reportedly don’t think they’ll be able to finish the season, though they have apparently been told they’ll still be paid.
These are some serious accusations being made against some powerful people at The Kelly Clarkson Show, and if the host wasn’t aware of the alleged conditions before, she undoubtedly is now. We’ll have to wait to see if and how these issues are addressed. In the meantime, Kelly Clarkson can still be seen on The Voice, whose 22nd season continues at 8 p.m. ET Monday, May 15, on NBC.
