Bodyguard Steve Neild claims it's dangerous business being Kate Gosselin.

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"I've had threats left in her mailbox, threats left on the front doorstep -- so there's a lot of stuff that members of the public don't know. There's stuff Kate doesn't even know, the contents of these emails, that haven't been shared with her. From a security perspective, we look at all that," said Neild during Sunday night's broadcast of TLC's "Inside Kate's World" Kate Plus 8 special.

"The other side of that now is the media interest. In the last 18 months, it's got to the stage where she can't go to California, she can't go to New York, without 20 or 30 paparazzi following her. It's dangerous."

Gosselin said she decided to ask TLC for security when Jon & Kate Plus 8 began increasing in popularity.

"It came to my attention as a mother thinking if I'm going to put myself and my kids out there in the public eye, I needed to be responsible and do what it takes to keep us safe," she said during the special.

"It was my request, honestly, that we start traveling with security -- someone who could watch people's intentions and their barriers and I could watch my kids."

She added that Neild was the "first person sent to us," so the family has come to recognize and appreciate all that he does for them.

"He really has the history, as far as where we've been to now because it's night and day," she explained.

"It's not always Steve that travels with us, but I can see the difference because he knows our family. The kids trust him. The kids love him. We're family friends."

Neild said he has protected "royal families, presidents and prime ministers" during his career, but none of them have compared to Gosselin.

"Like I say, nobody has had the public recognition that Kate has," he said.

In addition, Neild noted Gosselin is a "very polarizing personality."

"People either love her to bits or they hate her," he explained. "Sometimes it's almost just as tricky to deal with an overzealous fan who loves her as it is to deal with somebody that doesn't like her so much."

Gosselin reiterated during the special that while she initially disdained the paparazzi, she has come to recognize they are part of her decision to live a public life.

"I don't always face the paparazzi happily. Let's face it, they're invasive, they're intrusive, they're rude, generally speaking," she said.

"But the thing is, lately I've been trying to look at the paparazzi and see beyond them and see the people who are seeing what they're putting out there -- the people who do support me... If I can get beyond them and see where it's going, it helps me deal with it as well as accepting that this is my normal."

Neild agreed that he's seen a difference in the way Gosselin behaves in public.

"Slowly but surely, she's now appreciating the fact that these people -- the vast, vast majority of them -- are fans and not against us," he said.

"The fans are what makes the show, and she is far, far more mellowed now towards people. She'll stand and take photographs, she'll sign books for hours."
About The Author: Christopher Rocchio

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