Chris Harrison says he is temporarily “stepping aside” as host of “The Bachelor” after excusing a contestant’s racial insensitivity on social media.
“Just as I taught my children to stand up, and to own their actions, I will do the same,” Harrison said in a statement posted on Instagram Saturday.
Harrison’s statement comes three days after he defended Rachael Kirkconnell — a frontrunner on Matt James’ current season of “The Bachelor” and the first to feature a Black bachelor — for a resurfaced photo in which she appears to be attending a plantation-themed fraternity formal in 2018, and posts where she shared QAnon conspiracy theories and “liked” Confederate flag-related TikToks.