CBS3's Katie Fehlinger gives birth to twins
Pregnancy is something to be celebrated. It's not an occasion to shame someone the way some TV viewers and commenters on social media have attempted to do with CBS3's Katie Fehlinger.
The last week or so has been tough on CBS3's Katie Fehlinger.
With all the online furor she's sparked lately, you'd think the TV meteorologist had been found guilty of some heinous crime or decided to run for president of the United States.
The blonde bombshell did neither. Fehlinger got viewers and social media all worked up because she dared to appear on air doing her job while eight months pregnant with twins.
Well, the TV viewers who are revolted and outraged by the sight of Fehlinger's enormous baby bump can relax. They can eat their breakfasts without fear of throwing up as some claimed they did at the sight of her distended belly. Fehlinger gave birth to two healthy girls Thursday afternoon.
She was on the air Tuesday and went into labor later that day. Parker Janice was born at 12:58 p.m. Thursday weighing 4 pounds, 15 ounces. Kaeden Faye came soon after at 12:59 p.m. at 3 pounds, 12 ounces. Both girls reportedly are doing well considering they weren't expected for several weeks.
While pregnant with the babies, a whole lot of TV viewers didn't like looking at Fehlinger, and they let her know it. Fehlinger sucked up all the criticism until finally, last week she snapped and wrote a lengthy Facebook post pushing back at her haters, saying she didn't care what they thought about her appearance.
The story of her pregnancy shaming went viral as media outlets such as People Online, the Huffington Post and Yahoo Parenting picked it up. The column I wrote about Fehlinger's pregnancy attracted more than 500 comments, many of them negative.
One reader, Joe Orenstein, wrote, "I watch Katie present the weather and recently I was struck by how unattractive she appeared while being displayed on television."
That was mild considering how some other emails and online comments went. A lot of them couldn't be printed in the newspaper.
Many were kind and supportive like this one from Josephine Farrell from Mayfair:
"I, for one, look at her beautiful body in awe at what is transpiring. I feel a sense of sadness for the viewers that exude such negativity," Farrell wrote.
"I can only assume they have gotten so full of themselves, that they have lost touch with nature, God, and simplicity. Too bad for them. I never want to use such a word like 'moron' but that word is appropriate for these poor souls."
It was all so wrong. Fehlinger should have been preparing for one of the most momentous occasions of her life - not having people take shots at her.
She's going to be out for at least three months on maternity leave, bonding with her daughters and getting used to being a mom.
If she's smart, she'll take a break from social media, too - but not before she posts baby photos.