Tamron Hall says she 'never dealt' cocaine after reports say she confessed to doing so
Tamron Hall is clearing the air after it was reported she revealed she used to "facilitate" selling cocaine as a teenager with her college boyfriend.
U.K. tabloid The Daily Mail first reported that Hall made the comment during a taping of her talk show on Tuesday, which producers edited out.
The former "Today" host issued a statement to People and Entertainment Weekly in which she denied dealing drugs.
"I never dealt drugs," Hall said. "I am now nearly 50 years old and was reflecting on a bad judgement call that could have turned worse."
She said that she was sharing a story from her teenage years about a bad situation she got herself into during an interview with prison rights advocate, Topeka Sam. Hall's interview with Sam aired on Wednesday as part of a segment on Cyntoia Brown.
"It was part of an open and honest conversation about women, incarceration and mistakes made," Hall added.
She said a portion of her segment was edited from the show for "legal reasons."
"I hope my show can be a forum for sharing stories without shame or judgment, including a conversation we’re having Friday on opioid addiction," Hall said.
Paste BN has reached out to Hall's representatives for comment.
"The Tamron Hall Show" premiered Sep. 9 two years after she left NBC's "Today" show after losing her 9 a.m. hour with Al Roker to make way for the short-lived "Megyn Kelly Today."
"I was heartbroken," Hall says of her decision to exit. "(Imagine) you've been putting in the work, and suddenly your employer says they're phasing you out. I had some suspicions, because I'm a reporter and I'm pretty intuitive, but no one wants to lose their job. It wasn't about who I was losing it to – it was like a relationship where you're putting in 100% and the person who's putting in less has the nerve to break up with you."
Tamron Hall talks 'Today' show exit: Tamron Hall was 'heartbroken' by 'Today' exit, promises 'authentic' daytime talk show
Contributing Patrick Ryan