Ellen Degeneres’ speech slammed as ‘insincere’ amid toxic workplace allegations

Ellen Degeneres has ignited fresh fury after her show’s opening monologue was branded “insincere.”

On Monday, Ellen launched the new series of the her chat show, The Ellen Degeneres Show, opening with a joke-filled monologue that addressed allegations the set has become a toxic workplace environment.

The show has run for 17 years and proved a huge hit with fans, but its workplace culture has been met with scrutiny in recent months.

During the monologue, Ellen apologised for “ever hurting” anyone, took responsibility for her actions and admitted to being impatient.

She also made a number of jokes, including a wisecrack that she’d had a “super terrific” summer.

But some viewers were left dissatisfied, one tweeting: “Didn’t sound like a sincere apology to me. Didn’t outline the specific behaviour she was apologising for and justified it by saying it wasn’t intentional. All things you aren’t supposed to do when you apologise.”

Another scolded: “How about taking accountability without making a joke. The sarcastic jokes amongst her apology just makes it all seem disingenuous. #Ellen.”

A third fumed: “Didn’t really appreciate Ellen’s ‘apology’ – how has she had all summer to reflect and yet she couldn’t be sincere or at least serious? She needed to do better.”

Ellen has also faced criticism from employees both past and current, one of whom accused her of “turning our traumas into a joke.”

The employees, who spoke to Buzzfeed News, said they felt a lot of the monologue’s content had been “inappropriate”, but one did say that the fact the allegations were being openly discussed was “kind of amazing.”

Other fans jumped to Ellen’s defence.

“So happy to see her back today,” one content fan wrote.

Another praised Ellen for making her apology so publicly, tweeting: “Well done #Ellen taking ownership is a big deal.

“No one expects perfection. People need to take these celebrities off the pedestals they placed them on. They are humans just like you.”

A third commended: “Good on #Ellen for owning this. I’m a nice person as well, but we all have our moments. I get short & abrupt, anxious, all kinds of things.

“If you don’t have a range of emotions that affect you & your conduct from time to time, well, I think you’re full of it.

“I applaud Ellen…”

The allegations against the show’s workplace culture prompted WarnerMedia to launch an investigation into it.

Executive producers Andy Lassner and Mary Connelly also responded with a joint statement.

They said: “We are truly heartbroken and sorry to learn that even one person in our production family has had a negative experience. It’s not who we are and not who we strive to be, and not the mission Ellen has set for us.

“For the record, the day to day responsibility of the Ellen show is completely on us. We take all of this very seriously and we realize, as many in the world are learning, that we need to do better, are committed to do better, and we will do better.”

In a memo obtained by Us Weekly on July 30, Ellen apologised to her employees.

Ellen is said to have written: “On day one of our show, I told everyone in our first meeting that The Ellen DeGeneres Show would be a place of happiness – no one would ever raise their voice, and everyone would be treated with respect.

“Obviously, something changed, and I am disappointed to learn that this has not been the case. And for that, I am sorry. Anyone who knows me knows it’s the opposite of what I believe and what I hoped for our show.”

Mirror Online has reached out to Ellen’s reps for comment.

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