June 04--Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar, stars of the hit TLC reality show "19 Kids and Counting," said they felt like failures after hearing that their oldest son, Josh, was involved in inappropriate conduct with several underage girls when he was a teenager.
In a sit-down interview with Fox News anchor Megyn Kelly that is scheduled to air at 6 p.m. Pacific time Wednesday, the Duggar parents publicly addressed the allegations for the first time since reports surfaced two weeks ago. Two of the Duggars' daughters -- Jessa and Jill, who are now in their 20s -- were interviewed and will appear on the show as well, according to Fox News, which described the two sisters as victims.
"There was so much grief in our hearts. I think as parents we felt we're failures, you know?" Michelle Duggar told Kelly. "Here we tried to raise our kids to -- to do what's right and know what's right. And yet, one of our children made really bad choices and I think as a parent we were just -- we were devastated."
The day allegations surfaced, Josh Duggar, 27, resigned his post as executive director of FRC Action, the lobbying arm of conservative Christian group Family Research Council. He then issued an apology on his family's Facebook page. "Twelve years ago, as a young teenager I acted inexcusably for which I am extremely sorry and deeply regret," it began.
The scandal ignited on social media, where many expressed anger and disappointment toward the Arkansas family using the hashtags #CancelTheDuggars, #DitchTheDuggars and #BoycottTLC.
Streaming giant Hulu severed ties last week with "19 Kids and Counting." Companies and brands including Walgreens, Payless Shoe Source, Choice Hotels, Pure Leaf Iced Tea and General Mills have said they plan to remove their ads from the show.
"The Kelly File" averages 2.5 million viewers. Fox News Channel, owned by 21st Century Fox, is available in more than 90 million homes.
This post will be updated with more details as they become available.
