Clay Aiken says Rosie O’Donnell outed him on ‘The View’ years before he came out

"American Idol" alum Clay Aiken says he was accidentally outed while embroiled in a daytime TV controversy two decades ago.

Aiken, 47, reflected on the 2006 controversy in a Sept. 17 interview on Page Six Radio, recalling how Rosie O'Donnell "outed" him on "The View" while defending him after an awkward on-air exchange with Kelly Ripa on "Live with Regis and Kelly."

“I died inside a lot that week. I was in LA when that aired,” Aiken recalled. “And I don't have any ill feelings against Rosie. She did mean well.”

At the time Aiken, who was filling in for Regis Philbin on the Nov. 17 episode, jokingly placed his hand over Ripa's mouth so he could speak to the guests. Ripa called the gesture "a no-no" and addressed the incident again when Philbin returned Nov. 20. She then called into "The View" the following day as the controversy continued.

On the Nov. 21 episode, O'Donnell told "The View" audience, "Now listen, to me that was a homophobic remark. If that was a straight man, if that was a cute man, if that was a guy that she didn't question his sexuality, she would have said a different thing. I…

Original source: https://www.usatoday.com/entertainment/