NEWSWendy Williams Accuses PR Agent Of Making Statements Without Her Authorization After Publicist Issues Response To Sherri Shepherd Taking Over Her Show
Wendy Williams will not allow anyone to put words in her mouth.
On Tuesday, February 22, the former host of The Wendy Williams Show, 57, called out her PR agent Howard Bragman for issuing a statement regarding the status of her relationship with syndication company Debmar Mercury after they announced her show would be canceled in June and that guest host Sherri Shepherd would be taking over her slot.
"Mr. Bragman, Although I appreciate your concerns and respect you immensely I have not authorized you to make any statements on my behalf regarding my current status with Debmar Mercury," Williams stated on her Instagram Story on Tuesday, February 22. "Again, Thanks for your continuing concern and support."
The publicist issued a statement to Deadline earlier in the day that read: “It’s been a challenging time for Wendy as she deals with her health issues. She is incredibly grateful to Debmar-Mercury, to Sherri and everybody else who has supported the show through this time."
The response — which was supposed to be on the former radio DJ's behalf — noted that Williams "understands why this decision was made from a business point of view, and she has been assured by Debmar-Mercury that should her health get to a point where she can host again and should her desire be that she hosts again that she would be back on TV at that time.”
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However, according to the daytime diva's social media statement, she does not stand behind the words Bragman wrote.
In response to his client's claim that she did not sign off on the statement, Bragman insinuated the post may not have come directly from Williams herself. "I'm not honestly convinced of the source of that social media post, so when my old friend Wendy FaceTimes me personally and we alone have a chance to discuss recent events, together we can figure out the best path forward," the agent told People in response to the ailing host's Tuesday statement.
As OK! previously reported, after a 12 season run, co-presidents of the show's distributor, Debmar-Mercury, Mort Marcus and Ira Bernstein, released a statement announcing that the fan favorite talk show would be axed following the Think Like A Man star's continuing absence from the show due to several health woes.
"We all have great love and affinity for Wendy, who grew into a true icon during her 12 incredible seasons as the solo host of a live, daily talk show dishing on 'Hot Topics' and interviewing celebrities," the executives noted. "Since Wendy is still not available to host the show as she continues on her road to recovery, we believe it is best for our fans, stations and advertising partners to start making this transition now. We hope to be able to work with Wendy again in the future and continue to wish her a speedy and full recovery."
