Journalist Breaks Silence on Sarcastic Blake Lively Interview from 2016

A journalist who said she felt “belittled” by American actress Blake Lively shared on August 17 that the star’s “bump comment” was quite tough as she can’t get pregnant. The 51-year-old award-winning reporter Kjersti Flaa also revealed an unpublished video about the 2016 interview, and said that the main motive why she was doing it was because the actress made her feel “paralyzed” and like a “failure.”

In the video, Flaa could be seen congratulating Lively for her pregnancy, with the actress responding with a sarcastic quip that clearly made the reporter feel uncomfortable. During an interview with the Daily Mail, the journalist explained that the actress made her feel “completely ignored” during the sit-down. She detailed that the moment was so pathetic and devastating for her that it even made her question whether she wanted to keep doing that type of journalism or not.

The interview between the Norwegian reporter and the British tabloid happened at a moment when social media and many media outlets are speculating about an alleged feud between Lively and actor Justin Baldoni. Some reporters also revealed a connection between Flaa and a client of the Public Relations crisis manager that Baldoni recently hired. The 51-year-old journalist emphasized that she didn’t share the video of the interview with the actress as a distraction, and said that she was willing to clarify the situation if necessary.

The 2016 interview was originally meant to discuss Lively’s role in the movie Café Society. However, things turned tense when the reporter made a comment about her baby bump, as Lively said she actually wanted to say the same thing about Flaa and congratulated her because of her “little bump.” After hearing those comments, the journalist could be seen laughing nervously and having a hard time conducting the interview.

The reporter told the Daily Mail that what happened during that exchange was a traumatizing experience because she cannot conceive, which she described as a painful thing she has been dealing with over the last few years. She also said she believes that Lively deliberately wanted to make things difficult for her, as she claimed she attended the event so the actress could promote her latest movie.

Flaa said that all she wanted to do during the interview was to get out as fast as possible as she felt extremely hurt and uncomfortable because of the actress’ words. She added that it took several months for her to build her confidence again, and confessed that she thought about leaving journalism. The reporter also explained that one of the persons who helped her the most during those moments was a reporter whom she didn’t identify. She said that the reporter contacted her and told her that he also had a terrible experience during an interview that made him question his continuity as a journalist.