In an interview with Melinda Gates, Gayle King and Oprah Winfrey addressed the persistent rumor that they are a lesbian couple.
The two talk show hosts stated that they are not lovers.
During the interview, King said that she and her partner have been fighting against the rumors about their sexuality for a long time.
King noted that she once asked Oprah to do a show about their relationship since it was hard for her to get dates with people who thought they were gay.
During the interview, the two women talked about their decades-long relationship and how they would tell people if they were gay.
Gates complimented the pair’s deep and genuine friendships.
Winfrey agreed, noting that she believed that people were not used to seeing women with such strong and honest relationships.
According to Oprah Daily, the two women formed a strong connection when they were young journalists.
They first met in 1976 when King was working as a production assistant for a Baltimore television station and Winfrey was an anchor.
During a snowstorm, Winfrey asked King to stay with her one night so she could get home.
This was the beginning of their friendship. King noted that she had never met anybody like the person she met that night.
When asked about being a Black woman in an all-white community, Winfrey said that she did not fit into the stereotype of what it was like to be a Black girl.
She noted that she and her sister did not fit into the other people’s perceptions of what it was like to be a Black woman.
