Shepard Smith: Sorry I Called Robin Williams a 'Coward'

Robin Williams killed himself because he was ... a "coward"? Fox News host Shepard Smith suggested as much on the air yesterday, and later issued an apology "to the core of my being" once Twitter lashed out at him, Mediaite reports. As reported by Raw Story, Shepard talked about the joy Williams experienced watching his children grow into their mid-20s, then added: "And yet, something inside you is so horrible or you’re such a coward or whatever the reason that you decide that you have to end it. Robin Williams, at 63, did that today." Well, at least some on Twitter took him to task:

• "@ShepNewsTeam couldn't wait till his body was in the ground before calling #RobinWilliams a coward."—Froggie Leggs
• "Shep Smith, who I am usually a big fan of, has apparently never been depressed."—Henry Blodget
• "Shep Smith questioned whether Robin Williams was a 'Coward'? NOOOOO! Ailes got to the only good guy there! GODDAMN IT! #EverybodySucksAtFox"—Kevin Grussing

Next, Smith got on the phone with Mediaite and explained himself, saying more than once that he doesn't see the world "in a black-and-white way." Then came the apology, which reads in part:

• "And if any of his family members and friends were to have seen me use the word 'coward,' I would be horrified. I would just [like] to apologize to the end of the earth to anyone who might think that I meant to openly call him a coward. To the core of my being, I regret it."

Click to see how Williams apparently took his own life. (More Robin Williams stories.)