LOS ANGELES — “Entertainment Tonight” host Nancy O’Dell says women shouldn’t be objectified, even in the locker room.
In remarks that aired Monday on the entertainment news show, O’Dell addressed crude comments made about her by GOP presidential contender Donald Trump on video in 2005.
O’Dell said the mention of her name threw her “in the middle of the political arena of which I didn’t ask to be a part.”
O’Dell said that “there is no room for objectification of women” or anyone. She added, “not even in the locker room.”
Trump has apologized for the crude remarks, which included talk of groping women and his assertion that he tried and failed to sleep with a married woman he identified as “Nancy.” ”Access Hollywood” has identified O’Dell as the woman Trump referred to.
During Sunday’s debate with Democratic contender Hillary Clinton, Trump again dismissed his taped remarks to then-“Access Hollywood” host Billy Bush as “locker room talk.”
On Saturday, O’Dell spoke out for the first time, releasing a statement on Entertainment Tonight’s website:
Politics aside, I’m saddened that these comments still exist in our society at all. When I heard the comments yesterday, it was disappointing to hear such objectification of women. The conversation needs to change because no female, no person, should be the subject of such crass comments, whether or not cameras are rolling. Everyone deserves respect no matter the setting or gender. As a woman who has worked very hard to establish her career, and as a mom, I feel I must speak out with the hope that as a society we will always strive to be better.
Many in his party, including Speaker of the House Paul Ryan, have reduced or withdrawn their support for the candidate following the release of the hot mic video.
