Whoopi Goldberg SPITS On 'The View' Stage To Protest Uvalde Video Leak

Actress Whoopi Goldberg is known for her hot takes, and she did not hold back on “The View.”

Earlier this week, a Texas publication called the Austin American-Statesman posted an edited video that is over an hour long, compiling footage of the shooting at Robb Elementary School that ended with the deaths of 19 students and two teachers inside the school.

On Wednesday, “The Stand” actress made her opinion known on “The View” that the decision to leak the video was the wrong one, as it caused “outraged” among the families who had lost children in the senseless massacre. Not only that, but the committee investigating the shooting had reportedly planned on showing the video to Uvalde community members this weekend.

Whoopi did not hold back her feelings, saying, “I find it indefensible” that the Austin American-Statesman released the video for the world to see without even notifying families who had lost loved ones in the shooting.

“I’m sorry, you forgot that, attached to all those sounds are people's children, and you didn't have to do this,” she said in a video transcribed by EW. “They were going to see this video on Sunday, you did not have to release this and leak it.”

Whoopi called the decision to leak the video “appalling,” adding, “you should be ashamed of yourselves for doing that, for being thoughtless about the parents who have to relive this every day because it's on television every time you turn around.”

At that point, Whoopi literally turned around and spit on the stage behind her to make her feelings clear.

“I don't know if you guys over at that newspaper have kids, but, shame on you,” she said. “I know it doesn't mean anything coming from me, but shame on you.”

Whoopi Goldberg’s “The View” co-host, Sunny Hostin, does think that the video should have been made available to the public and described it as a “difficult balancing act” of journalism ethics.

“It's so important that we be able to, as the public [see the video],” she said, adding, “Videos, in my view, lead to just results, increased training, awareness” Sunny noted that the release of the videos “can really change the public narrative” about just what happened at Robb Elementary School.

Many were outraged to see the police taking their time responding to the shooting, with one officer reaching for hand sanitizer when young children were waiting for help.

Whoopi agreed that it was important for the public to see the police officer's response to the shooting. However, she felt the problem was leaking the video “without telling the parents, without giving them the opportunity to re-steel themselves” was the real issue.

“For them not to have given them a heads up... these are real people, these are real children that died,” she said.

In response to backlash over the release of the footage, American-Statesman Ethics & Standards Editor Manny Garcia released a statement responding to the release of the video.

“Our goal is to continue to bring to light what happened at Robb Elementary, which the families and friends of the Uvalde victims have long been asking for,” they wrote.

They also explained that they had made some edits to the video, like removing the audio, to remove the sound of children screaming when the gunman entered the classroom. Garcia added that they had “long and thoughtful discussions” about how and when to release the video.

“We have to bear witness to history, and transparency and unrelenting reporting is a way to bring change,” Garcia continued. “This story is part of a much larger public records and legal battle from our journalists, aligned with reporters in Uvalde, around Texas and the United States, to obtain all videos of the tragedy, body-camera footage, communications, 911 calls and more. We are all aligned for the truth.”

Many celebrities have spoken out against the shooting and are calling for stronger gun control. Uvalde native Matthew McConaughey has been one of the most vocal celebrities on the issue, calling not for gun control, but for gun responsibility.

His latest remarks on the issue can be read here.