14 DAY TRIAL // On August 11, 63-year-old actor Robin Williams killed himself at his home, after years of suffering from severe depression. Fox News’ Shepard Smith must have very limited knowledge of how depression works and how devastating its effects can be if left untreated because, in his coverage of the news, he called Williams a “coward” for taking his own life.
Back in the ‘80s, Williams became addicted to cocaine and alcohol, and he would then spend the rest of his life struggling with addiction and the depression it generated. He was always very honest in conversations on the topic though, in his final years, he did not go on the record with how difficult it must have been for him to cope with all this.
Reports say that, when he chose to end his own life, he had already been in a deep depression for long and that even his closest family members thought he would never recover. He was receiving treatment for it but it didn’t seem to work.
To Mr. Smith, Williams’ suicide is an act of cowardice, as he said on his show some hours ago. Video is embedded below.
He was talking about how much the actor had loved his 3 children and how he said they were his pride and joy. What a selfish thing for Williams to do to leave them without a father, Mr. Smith mused.
Reaction to his comment was instant and Twitter was flooded with criticism at Smith’s expense. He issued a statement to apologize, saying he didn’t mean the “coward” comment in the way it was interpreted by his viewers.
“I spent an entire hour talking about how much this man affected people’s lives and brought greatness to this world. I was just wondering aloud what could have made this man want to end it all. And it reminds us that we all have responsibility as friends and neighbors to help take responsibility to prevent this from happening. There are people who process suicide as a black-and white-issue. I don’t process anything as black-and-white,” Smith says in a statement to Mediaite.
“I was sorry to read online the people who see the world in a black-and-white way, and to suggest that they might have a definitive analysis of why he did such a thing. What I wanted to do is celebrate his life and find some meaning in our own lives, since we often do know someone who is reaching out, and we have a responsibility to help that person — maybe a phone call or a door knock is in order,” he continues.
He’s apologizing “to the end of the earth” for using the word “coward” and is mortified just thinking how William’s children must have felt to hear him talk of their father this way.
“To the core of my being, I regret it. It just came out of my mouth. And I’m so sorry. And to anyone and their families who see that, I am sorry,” Smith adds.
As regrettable as the use of the word “coward” is, Smith’s not the only one to use it when talking about Robin Williams’ death. Just minutes after word of it got out online, “Diff’rent Strokes” actor Todd Bridges did the same on Twitter, saying Williams should have turned to God for help and not see suicide as a way out. He too was forced to apologize.
