Kate Gosselin has attributed her 13-year-old twin daughters Mady and Cara's awkward silence during a Thursday appearance on the Today show to stage fright.
ADVERTISEMENT
"Thanks to @TODAYshow for having Cara, Mady and me on the show today!" Kate, 38, tweeted yesterday. "1st live interview can render even the gabbiest girls speechless. I'm proud of them, taking this opp! They were so excited but caught off guard by live tv!"
In response to a comment criticizing Kate for having to do "damage control already," the mother of eight wrote, "No damage done. They wanted to do interview with me, I said 'go for it' #morelifeopportunites #proudmomnomatterwhat."
Another commenter claimed Mady and Cara were unable to answer questions during the interview with Today co-anchor Savannah Guthrie because they were scared to say the wrong thing.
"There were no right or wrong answers," Kate argued on Twitter. "They just had a case of 'stage fright' #notactors."
ADVERTISEMENT
During a Thursday appearance on Today, Mady and Cara remained silent, even when a question was directly asked to either girl.
"Um...," Mady said, clamming up when asked about how her family has been doing since Kate Plus 8.
"Mady, your words," Kate scolded her daughter. "It's your chance. Spit it out... So this is their chance to talk and this is the most wordless I've heard them all morning."
Kate tried to help her daughters out by giving them talking topics, such as how Mady had previously said they're fine and have been doing well despite reports the kids have developmental problems and were forced to be on reality shows since Jon & Kate Plus 8.
Mady finally loosened up a bit and said she wouldn't say people had the wrong impression of them but rather they just didn't have the full story.
ADVERTISEMENT
"A lot of people think that filming our show has damaged us but it's only really helped," Mady shyly said.
Mady and Cara also enthusiastically agreed they'd like to star in another reality show because "it was fun."
Jon Gosselin, Kate's ex-husband and the father of their eight children, reportedly immediately called up TMZ to comment on the television interview after watching it, and he was apparently horrified.
"I felt upset. I was laying there with [my girlfriend] Liz [Jannetta] and we were like, 'Say something girls. Come on! Just say something. Anything.' And they didn't say anything and we were like, 'Ugh, this is horrible,'" Jon said, according to Us Weekly.
"Then I felt really bad. I mean, I didn't care too much for Kate or whatever, but I felt really bad for Mady and Cara because I love them and they're just put in this situation. It was like deer in the headlights. It just kind of proves my point of Kate bringing the kids out instead of her just sort of doing it herself. It all blew up in everyone's face and I feel horrible for my children because now they're going to have to deal with the public."
ADVERTISEMENT
Jon then voiced his reasoning as to why he believes his twin girls froze on-camera.
"By body language they were probably like, 'What's the moral thing to do and what does my mom want me to do?' They were torn and they just shutdown," Jon, 36, explained. "It was just a classic case of being silent. You get to a point where you are like, 'I don't know who to please. Do I please myself or do I please my parents -- or my mother?'"
Jon also admitted he feels Kate "manipulated" the girls into doing the interview and wanting to be in the spotlight now.
"In my heart that's what I believe, that's how I feel. Can I prove it? I can't prove it, but you can't take my feelings away from me. I feel that way," Jon said.
About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski