AMY Robach and TJ Holmes’ affair was turned into an unnecessary scandal due to mistakes made by ABC, an expert exclusively told The U.S. Sun.
The former GMA co-anchors were married to other people when their romance was leaked in November 2022.
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Amy was married to her ex-husband Andrew Shue and TJ to his now-ex-wife Marilee Fiebig, 45.
After being placed on a long hiatus from the daytime TV show, they were officially let go in January due to the scandal.
Edward Coram-James, chief executive of leading PR firm GoUp spoke exclusively to The U.S. Sun about the mistakes made by ABC and GMA that worsened the situation.
He criticized the decision by ABC News to launch an investigation into the affair saying, that the network “multiplied the fallout and increased the length” of the crisis.
Coram-James added: “There are occasions where this is a good idea, especially when the allegations made include serious wrongdoing (in which case the institution has to be seen to be acting responsibly). Affairs are not one of those occasions.
“In my opinion, ABC made a significant (albeit common) error here. I don’t believe that the two principals needed to move on from ABC.
“As unfortunate and inappropriate as affairs are, they are a normal part of life. The audience will likely have quickly moved on.”
The PR expert noted that affairs are common issues to tackle in the industry and explained that the general approach is accepting that bad press will happen.
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However, he added that “how bad, and how long it lasts, is largely down to your crisis comms response.”
“When the story originally breaks, it can feel like the chaos will never end,” he said.
“This is the point at which intervention is important, as the decisions made at this point will often dictate how bad the fallout will be.
“If bad decisions are made, those bad decisions can pour petrol on the fire. If good decisions are made, they can pour water.”
The PR expert claimed that the subsequent fallout was unnecessary especially with affairs being “part of the fabric of everyday life,” meaning there is generally less judgment.
He called ABC and GMA’s reaction a “common mistake” where employers “go on the defensive and try to distance themselves from the principal, seeing this as the best way to protect themselves.”
However, “this rarely works,” he said, adding: “By parting ways, the network and the principals are again lending credibility to the idea that there’s a crisis, and inflating the level of crisis.
“There was no need for it to be a scandal.”
He concluded that despite the fallout, the pair “will be fine.”
“They’re both incredibly talented and respected anchors and their wrongdoing is very far from terminal. They’ll get more work.”
The U.S. Sun has contacted ABC for comment.
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