Former ABC News anchor Kendis Gibson has claimed that a toxic work culture and covert racism within the network contributed to a suicide attempt in 2018.
Gibson, 52, details his spiral of depression and anxiety in his new memoir, Five Trips: An Investigative Journey into Mental Health, Psychedelic Healing and Saving a Life.
The journalist says his mental health problems worsened, eventually leading to a suicide attempt, after he landed his dream job at ABC News in 2014.
Initially, Gibson received a warm reception on the network from the Good Morning America team – Robin Roberts, Michael Strahan and George Stephanopoulos.
Robins, says Gibson, was “the queen of the show” and “couldn’t have been nicer and more genuine, on and off camera.”
But an unnamed fellow black correspondent soon warned Gibson that the network was like “Mickey’s plantation.”
“The feeling I got from them was that it was about veiled racism, and there was some truth to what was behind it,” Gibson said. Page six.
Gibson was originally hired at the network’s Washington, DC office, but was transferred to the Los Angeles office within a year.
Former ABC News anchor Kendis Gibson has claimed that a toxic work culture and covert racism at the network contributed to a suicide attempt in 2018
The journalist says his mental health problems worsened, eventually leading to a suicide attempt, after he landed his dream job at ABC News in 2014.
He was eventually moved to New York to take over TJ Holmes’ World News Now gig overnight – a position seen as a springboard for flagship roles.
Gibson, 52, details his spiral of depression and anxiety in his new memoir, Five Trips: An Investigative Journey into Mental Health, Psychedelic Healing and Saving a Life
The gig is taxing and anchors have been known to request exits, with health concerns topping the list of reasons. Gibson says he had 19 co-anchors during his time on the show.
While he admits there was already underlying depression, Gibson says it has worsened during his last two years at the store.
He writes that for years he “tried to perform at the top of the game… on a late-night show [and] during the day.
“It was just a lot, and the network wasn’t listening to me at all.”
Gibson says that unlike other presenters, his bosses ignored his pleas to get off his desk, despite the toll it took on his mental health. Then he started taking Ambien to address insomnia and anxiety.
The journalist also claims he has faced covert racism, with one of his bosses once berating him for wearing jeans on air.
The boss reportedly said, “You’re doing television news now and not going to a rap concert. Never wear jeans again.’
Robin Roberts, says Gibson, was “the queen of the show” and “couldn’t have been nicer and more genuine, on and off camera.”
Gibson broke down after moving to New York to take over TJ Holmes’ World News Now gig overnight – a position seen as a springboard for flagship roles
Gibson claims the now-fired director blocked his promotion at the network after helping lead a “Diversity Task Force,” which saw his GMA appearances become less frequent.
Additionally, executives continued to relay his pitches to GMA, including exclusives with Formula 1 champion Lewis Hamilton and Latin American superstars Maluma and Ricky Martin.
“If you’re not on ‘GMA,’ you’re not making your money. [It feels like] there is something wrong with you. It messed with my psyche,” Gibson said.
On October 12, 2018, Gibson says he has reached his breaking point.
The Emmy winner chased down two Ambien with two glasses of wine after a night shift and cried herself to sleep. When he woke up, he quit his job to commit suicide.
Gibson texted his former partner to say goodbye and walked to his kitchen window, planning to jump.
However, the Ambien and wine sent him backwards to the ground.
Then he woke up with his best friend standing over him. The friend carried him to bed and staged an intervention, involving his World News Now co-host Diane Macedo.
Gibson returned to the anchor’s desk just hours after the suicide attempt.
Gibson then moved to Miami, where he anchored the news for six months
Gibson returned to anchor this year, working at PIX11 News in New York
He started seeing a therapist and taking medications for depression and anxiety.
When the network offered to extend his contract for a year due to an “insulting” $10,000 salary increase, Gibson did not agree.
Gibson described the offer as a “network pay” and said he “didn’t think it was worth sacrificing my time and health to add another year to that difficult schedule.”
The host then moved to MSNBC, but 18 months after starting the gig, his former ABC boss was fired for alleged racist comments, including that Gibson was “worth less than toilet paper.”
His old boss’s comment, which Gibson said reduced him to “something to wipe people’s asses with,” hit the news and left Gibson screaming and crying in a fetal position on the bathroom floor.
“I went to such a dark place on that bathroom floor. It was such a difficult moment for me. It was clear I wasn’t fully healed yet,” he said.
Gibson then moved to Miami, where he anchored the news for six months before embarking on psychedelic recovery after starting to use magic mushrooms to improve his mental health.
“I wanted to write a book about my depression, and one thing led to another, and it just evolved into the way different psychedelics helped me,” he says.
“I’m not forcing anyone to take psychedelics, but hopefully it will open a conversation and encourage people to explore alternatives.”
Gibson returned to anchor this year, working at PIX11 News in New York.
‘I’m in another room. “It’s the first time I’ve been somewhere where I’m not looking for the next job and I’m comfortable in my own skin,” he said.
‘It’s not an early morning shift. I’m still trying not to test myself with those hours.”
DailyMail.com has contacted ABC News for comment on this story.