Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar, the father and mother in TLC reality show “19 Kids and Counting,” said on their website on Saturday they would soon appear in a Fox News interview, where they will address allegations that their son had molested girls when he was younger.
The scheduling of the interview, which the Duggars said will center on the time period when their eldest son was suspected of committing the wrongdoing, follows a decision by at least a dozen advertisers to ditch “19 Kids and Counting.”
The Duggars’ show features their large Christian family and is one of the top programs on cable television.
The scandal was touched off when In Touch magazine published a police report alleging Josh Duggar fondled several girls when he was a teenager. Last week he acknowledged acting “inexcusably” 12 years ago and apologized for his actions.
Josh Duggar was never charged and the police report was destroyed last week by court order to protect the identity of an alleged victim.
“Next week we will sit down with Megyn Kelly on Fox News to share our hearts with you about the pain that we walked through as a family 12 years ago, the tears we all shed and the forgiveness that was given,” Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar said in a statement on their website on Saturday.
On Thursday, Republican presidential hopeful Rick Santorum said he was “sickened” by revelations of molestation by Josh Duggar, who formerly worked at Christian lobbying group the Family Research Council and had once helped Santorum campaign.
Media commentators have speculated that Discovery Communications Inc, which owns TLC, could end production of “19 Kids and Counting” over the scandal.
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