Interview was taped before the airdate of ABC special

Apr 28, 2015 07:15 GMT  ·  By

Before ABC aired Bruce Jenner’s 2-hour interview with Diane Sawyer, in which he came out as trans-woman and spoke of his decades-long struggle to accept his true gender identity, Kim Kardashian sat down for an interview with NBC’s Matt Lauer.

The segment aired on Monday’s The Today Show and is available in full below. It tackled the issue of how the family was dealing with Jenner’s transition and whether there was any truth to reports that they were shunning him because he was damaging the Kardashian “brand.”

The family rallies behind Bruce

There isn’t any truth to them, Kim says. “Say what you will about us, but we do everything as a family,” she tells Lauer in a very stern tone. Clearly, she’s aware of the fact that the Kardashians are among the most vilified celebrities online, but she doesn’t want that to get in the way. Just like it doesn’t get in the way of their making a fortune off shameless self-promotion.

However, she adds, this isn’t about them, this is about Bruce. The entire family has rallied behind the former Olympian and is trying to cope with the reality of his transition from male to female. The adjustment is a “hard” one, “absolutely,” but it’s happening.

Bruce has nothing but love and support from his family, all of whom are proud to call him “dad,” Kim explains.

Family has received counseling to understand what’s happening

Kim also says that the family’s focus right now is on making sure they’re respectful of Bruce, which includes using the right pronoun when addressing him or speaking of him to someone else.

She can’t even begin to imagine what it must be like to live for decades feeling like you don’t belong and aren’t true to your true self, but perhaps she doesn’t have to: if Bruce is happy, she’s happy. And Bruce has found “pure happiness,” Kim adds.

As for the respectful way to address Bruce, Kim says she and the fam have had counseling sessions, including with people from GLAAD (Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation), and have learned that they must address Bruce by “he” and “him” until the transition is complete.

At the same time, he will remain Bruce until he announces his new trans-name.

Kim passes with flying colors

It’s true, the Internet hates Kim Kardashian almost with as much passion as it loves her and fawns over every little thing she does. She is one of the most popular celebrities online and she is also the only star to be able to sell anything in the media, whether it’s a trip to the gym or a scandalous mag cover.

Kim Kardashian “does nothing for a living,” yet she’s more present than any other celebrity in showbiz right now. And she’s not showing signs of going anywhere soon, which makes the vitriol against her double at times.

With this interview though, for the first time in a very, very long time, Kim has won over the majority of the public. She said all the right things in this interview and managed to come across as respectful, responsible and well-spoken.

Right now, the very people who used to post negative comments about her on whatever forum at their disposal are now praising her. That’s definitely not something that we see every day.