On Sunday, Howard Kurtz made an on air apology to Jason Collins.
The host of Reliable Sources apologized to the NBA star during the CNN show and invited David Folkenflik of NPR and Dylan Byers of Politico to question him about his gaffe at the Daily Beast and the statements he made on video for the Daily Download.
The apology sprung from a column Kurtz wrote for the Daily Beast during which he claimed that Collins, who recently came out as gay in an issue of Sports illustrated, did not disclose the fact that he had previously been engaged to a woman. However, Collins had made note of this during the Sports Illustrated article.
“I apologize to readers, to viewers and, most importantly, to Jason Collins and his fiancee,” Kurtz said, according to the Washington Post. “I hope this very candid response can help me earn back your trust over time. It is something I am very committed to doing.”
Kurtz further went on to state that he should have been more thorough with his research, claiming that he read the story “too fast and carelessly missed” the section where Collins discussed his engagment, reports The Hollywood Reporter.
“I didn't give him a chance to respond to my account before I wrote it and in addition my first correction was not as complete and as full as it should have been,” Kurtz said, according to the Huffington Post.
The Hollywood Reporter also states that Kurtz apologized for his comment in the Daily Download video, where he said that Collins, in reference to Collins’ previous relationships with women, “played both sides of the court.”
Collins was dismissed from his job at the Daily Beast, although he claims it was a long time in the making