Following her trip to space, Gayle King addressed those who criticized her and others involved in the historic Blue Origin flight.
After weeks of discussions and preparations, Gayle traveled to space briefly on Monday as part of Jeff Bezos’s Blue Origin New Shepard mission.
Leading up to the trip and after, many critics deemed the trip unnecessary due to the current economic landscape and other global issues.
Singer Katy Perry, civil rights activist Amanda Nguyen, aerospace engineer Aisha Bowe, and filmmaker Kerianne Flynn joined Gayle in the all-female crew, as did Bezos’s fiancee and author, Lauren Sanchez.
Upon Gayle’s departure from the space capsule after landing, she kissed the ground and celebrated being back on Earth before more discussion about the trip.
She also reacted to an internet meme of her scared pre-launch expression and fired back at the critics.
Gayle addressed her critics: ‘This is what bothers me’
Entertainment Tonight caught up with Gayle after her space flight to learn more about her experience. However, they also asked her about the negative feedback the mission received.
“This is what bothers me because I’ve certainly read some of the things online,” she said, adding, “Coming from people I know, that I like, that I consider friends.”
Gayle explained that Blue Origin wants to ” take the waste [from Earth] and put it in space” to clean up the planet.
“There was nothing frivolous about what we did. So, you know, I’m very disappointed,” she said.
She also indicated that people shouldn’t disregard the trip’s potential “to inspire other women and young girls.”
Gayle shared that many individuals, including young girls, women, and men, have never thought they could do something like this until seeing her involvement.
Several celebrities spoke out about Gayle’s trip
ET showed clips of several celebrities who were outspoken about the space trip. As Monsters and Critics reported, Olivia Munn blasted Gayle’s trip while co-hosting Today with Jenna & Friends.
Model and actress Emily Ratajkowski also shared her thoughts in an online video clip that went viral.
“Think about how many resources went into putting these women into space, for what? I’m disgusted,” Ratajkowski said in part of her video.
While speaking to ET, Gayle said she wouldn’t “name-check” anyone who publicly criticized her because she likes those people.
“There’s always gonna be some haters, and I’m not even gonna name check anybody, because I know these people and like these people,” she said.
“Have you been? Have you been? And if you still feel that way after you come back, please let’s have a conversation,” she said.
“Educate yourself, and tell me if you don’t feel differently,” Gayle said to her critics.
Gayle shared if she’d ever return to space
The extensive conversation about Gayle and her crewmates’ trip to space continued on CBS Mornings, with multiple segments and interviews about the Blue Origin mission.
In one early segment, after Gayle returned to the studio, CBS Mornings co-stars and crew members cheered and applauded.
“That’s how I feel, too. That’s how I feel, too. I’m alive. I’m alive, all my body parts working, and I didn’t pee on myself,” she joked.
“When you visit space, it really feels good to be back home,” she told everyone.
CBS’s Mark Strassmann reported on the space trip from the Van Horn, Texas, launch area. He mentioned covering this trip was “different” because he saw his friend and colleague nervous about participating.
When Strassmann’s report ended, Gayle mentioned that her friend Oprah Winfrey called her out for not answering Strassmann’s “Would you go again?” question during an earlier post-flight press conference.
“I would go again. Not anytime soon, but now that I’ve been through it, I know now that I could do it again,” Gayle shared on CBS Mornings.