The 20 Most Cringe-Worthy Moments on ‘The View’

In 1997, legendary broadcaster and television veteran Barbara Walters created "The View." As a daytime talk show hosted by women, the show covers a wide variety of topics, ranging from fashion and beauty tips to heated discussions about culture and politics. Due to its improvisational nature, plus a revolving door of high-profile guests, "The View" went from a little-watched show to a mass-market sensation. Now in its 28th season, the show stands as one of the most-watched shows on daytime television.

While the show's casual chat style has garnered many fans, it has also created more than a couple of moments of cringe and controversy. Sometimes, it's guests that cause problems. Other times, however, the hosts themselves get into it, resulting in awkward and entertaining moments. Unsurprisingly, "The View" has courted controversy, given its debate-style format occurring every day of the week for decades. In this article, we will explore 20 of the most cringe-inducing moments on "The View." (For other inflammatory television programs, discover why a man married a horse on this controversial talk show.)

24/7 Tempo compiled a list of the 20 most cringe-worthy moments on "The View" using a range of entertainment and news publications, including Good Housekeeping, US Weekly, and Okmagazine.com. Next, we picked moments from the show ranging from awkward to inflammatory. After that, we confirmed aspects of said moments using sites like The New York Post and People Magazine.

Ever the courter of controversy, pundit and political analyst Ann Coulter brought some very hot takes with her when she made a guest appearance on "The View" in September 2012. While there to promote her new book on what she deemed to be "race-mongering" by liberal politicians, Coulter suggested that liberals and Democrats don't care about the Black community. The two Black panelists on the show, Sherri Shepherd and Whoopi Goldberg, took immediate offense. The discussion quickly devolved into an argument about politicians from over a hundred years ago. It reached a fever pitch, however, when Goldberg's comments had to be censored from the broadcast.

A few years ago, discussions about religious discrimination in the context of wedding cake purchases were all the rage in American public discourse. So naturally, the panelists on "The View" dug into the topic. While talking about a bakery that was fined for refusing to bake a cake for same-sex marriage, former sitcom stars Raven-Symoné and Candace Cameron Bure got into it. Suffice to say, neither could agree about the importance of the cake and what it symbolizes for weddings. The two ladies argued more and more, unable to find common ground. Before it came to blows, co-host Nicole Wallace stepped in and attempted to reframe the topic. Her diplomacy did little to quell the tensions, however, as Symoné and Bure remained incensed. Eventually, a cutaway from the argument provided the audience with some much-needed comic relief.

While regular Elisabeth Hasselbeck was on maternity leave, "The View" featured a revolving lineup of co-hosts to take her place. One such replacement was reality star Kate Gosselin. Instead of sitting in on an episode, however, Gosselin became a heated topic of discussion herself. It occurred after she divorced her co-star Jon Gosselin and breached the couple's custody agreement. Though she attempted to explain (contradictorily) the reasons for interrupting her ex-husband's court-appointed time with their children, Whoopi Goldberg was none too pleased. She took Gosselin to task for what she saw as malicious behavior, acting more like a family court judge than a fellow talk show panelist.

In a 2010 episode of "The View," the hosts dug into an incident involving sports broadcaster Erin Andrews being stalked and filmed without her permission. Attempting a bad joke, host Elisabeth Hasselbeck suggested the stalker should have waited a few months to see Andrews on "Dancing with the Stars." That way, he could see more revealing body shots. The joke did not go over well, however. The other hosts and audience alike took umbrage with the idea that rocking a revealing outfit on television was the same as being stalked. In the wake of her controversial (if joking) stance, Hasselbeck went on air the next day and, through tears, apologized for her contentious comments.

Often, the hosts of "The View" would part in one of their recurring Hot Topics segments. One such hot topic became scalding during an October 2015 episode. The hosts watched a viral video related to the topic and discussed the racist assumptions people make regarding other people's names. Upon viewing the clip, however, Raven Symoné burst into laughter. She admitted she probably wouldn't hire someone with an outsized name. To illustrate, she offered an example like "Watermelondra." The joke did not land, however, and crickets could be heard throughout the studio after she made her comment. The controversy simmered in the background until Ann Coulter made a guest appearance on a later episode and roasted Symoné for her comment. The audience didn't disagree. This suggested that Symoné's joke was way out of line.

When it came to racist topics on "The View," former sitcom star and co-host Raven Symoné couldn't help but get caught up in controversies. During another episode from 2015, the hosts discussed how a Venezuelan TV show host was fired for making incredibly racist comments comparing Michelle Obama to a character from the movie "Planet of the Apes." After Rosie Perez controversially suggested that the Latin community is racist, Symoné decided to take it a step further. In response to the topic, Symoné stopped the studio in its tracks by saying "Some people look like animals." Suffice it to say, this did not go down well with anyone and the whole segment made the hosts of "The View" look bad.

2015 seemed to be a contentious year on "The View," as an episode regarding nurses brought the hosts into further hot water. During the episode, the hosts discussed Miss Colorado Kelley Johnson appearing on the Miss America Pageant stage to talk about her career as a nurse specializing in Alzheimer's patients. She wore her nurse scrubs and gave an emotional speech about working with one patient and what it meant for her job.

In response to the clip, however, hosts Michelle Collins and Joy Behar tore into Johnson. Collins suggested she had done little more than read her emails on stage. Behar accused her of stealing valor, so to speak, for wearing a doctor's stethoscope as a nurse. Not long after the episode aired, "The View" faced intense backlash. Social media users created and rallied around the "nursesunite" hashtag. To make matters worse, premier sponsors Johnson & Johnson and Eggland's Best pulled their advertising spots from the show. Eventually, Collins and Behar took back their insults and offered (weak) reasoning for their dismissive comments.

The daughter of former Sen. John McCain, Meghan McCain became a regular guest host on "The View." She served as the resident conservative host for several years. In 2019, however, she got into an argument with Joy Behar over former President Donald Trump. While it was common for the pair to get into political debates, this time it went too far. McCain said she was tired of being the show's "sacrificial Republican." Behar then made a sarcastic comment to McCain. In response, McCain called her the "B-word." This made the audience and co-host Sunny Hostin visibly uncomfortable. Instead of taking the insult back, however, McCain doubled down, suggesting she and Behar traded such words all the time. For her part, Behar didn't seem to mind at all.

Despite being an original co-host of "The View" for nearly a decade, television execs pulled the plug and told Star Jones her contract would not be renewed. They asked her to remain professional, follow their timeline, and not air any dirty laundry. Two days before the official announcement, however, Jones broke her silence live on-air and told everyone she would no longer be on the show. While Joy Behar looked shocked, even confused, co-producer and fellow host Barbara Walters looked angry. The following day, Walter told the audience that Jones was supposed to stay for another month but due to her breaking the protocol by announcing her leave early, Walters said she felt betrayed and this episode would be Jones' last appearance.

As evidenced by this list, some co-hosts like Elisabeth Hasselbeck can't help but get caught up in controversial discussions. While discussing a Black politician being caught saying a racist word, Hasselbeck bothered co-hosts Sherri Shepherd and Whoopi Goldberg with her comments. Hasselbeck said that no one should use that word, regardless of their race. For her part, Goldberg remained patient and diplomatic as she tried to explain why she disagreed with Hasselbeck. Hasselbeck said she wanted to understand the other host's point of view. Instead, she seemed to have selective hearing regarding Goldberg's response and almost broke into tears by the time the discussion ended.

Once again, Elisabeth Hasselbeck found herself mired in controversy. This time, however, Hasselbeck got into trouble for what she said backstage. Years ago, author Ramin Setoodeh wrote a nonfiction book about "The View" called "Ladies Who Punch." Right before the book's release, a leaked audio clip documented Hasselbeck's explicit backstage tirade. The incident sprung from a 2006 episode where a discussion about the morning-after pill caused Hasselbeck to storm off stage. Incensed by Barbara Walters' chastising comments, Hasselbeck got so fed up that she said she wouldn't come back to the show, and hilariously, claimed to never swear in the middle of swearing. It was all bark and no bite, however, as Hasselbeck returned to "The View" in short order. After the leaked audio surfaced, Hasselbeck apologized and said she was pregnant at the time.

Even the smallest yet ignorant comments have landed "The View" in the controversial spotlight. During a 2022 episode, the panelists discussed the banning of books due to content dealing with racism, adult themes, and the Holocaust. Out of nowhere, Whoopi Goldberg suggested that the Holocaust had nothing to do with race. This caught the other panelists off guard. Despite being inaccurate, Goldberg dug a deeper hole when she tried to explain what she meant. The following day, she tried to get ahead of the fury by issuing an apology. It was too little too late, however, as her comments kicked off a tidal wave of public dissension resulting in Goldberg making national headlines. In response, ABC News president Kim Godwin personally suspended Goldberg from the network, taking away her hosting duties for two weeks.

During the 2010 season of "The View," the panelists discussed actor Mel Gibson's hateful feud with his then-partner Oksana Grigorieva. Thanks to recorded voicemails of the spat, Gibson was heard saying incredibly cruel and racist comments, including uttering a slur against Mexican people. Though most of the panelists agreed that his comments were horrible, Whoopi Goldberg interjected and defended Gibson. She said that she knew him personally and that he wasn't a racist. Instead of quelling the anger, Goldberg's comments kicked off more controversy. Her stance was hard to argue, given the clearly hateful and racist comments captured on Gibson's voicemail. (For other antagonistic actors, discover the most hated movie characters ever.)

A video surfaced in 2015 of a police officer violently assaulting a young student after they refused to stop using her phone in class. During "The View's" extra show called "After the View," Raven Symoné came under fire for her opinion on the incident. While she condemned the police officer for using unnecessary force when detaining the student, she also suggested the student could have just followed the rules and saved herself from the problem. As many people felt the police officer's actions were unconscionable, they criticized Symoné for what amounted to victim blaming. Outrage around her comments quickly grew, leading to a Change.org petition calling for Symoné to be fired. Though it received 150,000 signatures in less than a week, the controversy quickly blew over and Symoné retained her spot on the show.

During one 2018 episode, Republican commentator and Fox News host Jeanine Pirro appeared on "The View" to discuss several topics. She came in swinging, however, defending the Russia-United States Helsinki summit before blaming former President Barack Obama for all the country's problems. When Whoopi Goldberg attempted to interject, Pirro cut her off and told her she had "Trump Derangement Syndrome." Soon after, Pirro began saying horrible things about immigration and immigrants. Obviously fed up, Goldberg told her goodbye. In response, the other panelists brought the episode to an awkward and cringe-worthy close.

Much like recurring guest Ann Coulter, Bill O'Reilly has made a career of being a controversial conservative commentator. During an October 2010 episode, O'Reilly guest-starred and remained true to form when he angered the hosts with his political comments. During a discussion over Park51, a mosque planned to be built near ground zero of the World Trade Center terrorism attacks, O'Reilly suggested that no one wanted a mosque built there. Citing an obscure CNN research poll, O'Reilly claimed that 70% of Americans disagree with the mosque's construction. He didn't let up, increasing his inflammatory comments until Whoopie Goldberg cursed at him and left the stage along with Joy Behar in disgust. Though they later returned to the show and O'Reilly tried to clarify his comments, it was too late for any endearment between the parties.

An episode that aired on May 23, 2007, went down in history as one of the more awkward moments in "The View's" history. While discussing the Iraq War, the long-standing rivalry between co-hosts Rosie O'Donnell and Elisabeth Hasselbeck became particularly apparent. O'Donnell had a liberal stance, whereas Hasselbeck had a more conservative viewpoint. As such, the discussion went from bad to worse, flaring tempers and reigniting feuds. It got so heated that hosts Joy Behar and Michelle Collins pretended to walk off and ask for a commercial break in an attempt to diffuse the blistering tension. The fight wasn't forced either, as the show's executive producer Bill Geddie later said, "It was a horrible day to be in 'The View' studio."

Many of the most painful moments on "The View" arose from arguments. Some, however, came from moments of unintentional comedy. While interviewing actress Claire Danes in a 2011 episode, Whoopi Goldberg accidentally passed gas, causing the audience to burst into laughter. The nature of the interview went from serious to lighthearted after Goldberg made a funny remark. When she passed gas again, however, Goldberg doubled down by saying "If you can't handle a fart, you can't handle me." While the other co-hosts looked somewhat uncomfortable, Goldberg endeared herself to the audience by completely owning the moment.

Back in the mid-aughts, politician John Edwards was a rising star in the Democratic Party. His trajectory was brought to a halt, however, when tabloids exposed his affair with a movie producer named Rielle Hunter. Even worse, Edwards fathered a child with his mistress while his wife battled breast cancer, a disease to which she eventually succumbed.

While this was an unforgivable sin in the public's eyes, it didn't stop Hunter from making money on the controversy by writing a tell-all book detailing her affair with Edwards, including horrifically critical comments about Edwards' late wife. In 2012, she made the mistake of stopping by "The View" to promote her book. Instead of garnering any sympathy, Hunter underwent something of an interrogation from the show's hosts. Right off the bat, Whoopi Goldberg bluntly stated, "In your book, you trash a dead lady. That was kind of crappy."

Hunter attempted to defend herself by saying she only wanted to tell the truth and be transparent about the controversial dynamics. These attempts failed to sway the audience or host opinions. Later in the episode, Hunter said, "I'm not a mistress, I'm a mom." Elisabeth Hasselbeck was having none of it, however, saying: "Truth be told, you were a mistress." It only got worse for Hunter from there and she spent more time defending herself than getting a good plug for her book. To the hosts' credit, they refused to budge. They rightfully criticized her for attempting to capitalize on scandal and tragedy.

During Kelly Osbourne's time as a co-host on "The View," she landed in boiling hot water for some comments she made about immigrants. During a 2015 episode, the hosts discussed presidential candidate Donald Trump and his lead in the voter polls. Osbourne attempted to rebuke Trump's incendiary comments about immigrants. Instead, she made an even more racist comment when she said, "If you kick every Latino out of this country, then who is going to be cleaning your toilet, Donald Trump?"

Instantly, Osbourne's facial expression turned from gloating to horrifying when she realized what she had just said. Her co-hosts' reactions ranged from uncomfortable to shocked. Despite her attempt to criticize Trump's racist comments about immigrants, Osbourne ended up making an even more racist comment instead. Hoping to quickly quell the fire, Osbourne issued an apology but the effect of her comment lingered in the air for a good while after the fact. (For more television, discover famous TV catchphrases that have become part of our everyday dialogue.)