I really had no opinion of Dr. Phil McGraw prior to his involvement in the Britney Spears fiasco. And to be honest, I still remain indifferent about his show and really could care less about how he lives his life; however, I do feel compelled to discuss his most recent displays of questionable behavior.
I’d call it hypocrisy, but the good doctor would likely disagree.
Take a look at Dr. Phil’s latest antics and you make the call:
By know you know that last month Dr. Phil was contacted by Britney Spears’s family who asked if he would please meet with their derailed daughter in the psychiatric ward of an L.A. hospital. He obliged, but then decided to release a statement which read in part: “My meeting with Britney and some family members this morning in her room at Cedars leaves me convinced more than ever that she is in dire need of both medical and psychological intervention.”
Within hours of McGraw’s statement he was massacred in various publications by practicing mental experts, Britney’s family, and others.
Fast-forward to this week when Dr. Phil went on multiple network morning shows, chatfests and entertainment news programs to try to do some major damage control.
During McGraw’s appearances he attempted to bolster his position, which was tough given the fact that a spokeswoman for the Spears family had already told a national TV audience that Dr. Phil had violated their trust by speaking out about Britney’s condition.
Mind you all of Dr. Phil’s TV appearances came after he publicly pledged to remain mum about his hospital visit with Spears.
McGraw started his rounds on “Good Morning America” and “Today” earlier this week and ended up on ABC’s “The View” yesterday. At each stop his involvement with the Spears case was the No. 1 topic of discussion and he flapped his lips continuously during each visit.
So much for keeping his mouth shut.
On “Today,” McGraw said he regretted talking about Spears’ mental health after visiting her in the hospital, but maintained doing so, in his opinion, didn’t violate the family’s trust.
Note: The Spears family vehemently disagrees.
Then on “Good Morning America” he rejected critics who accused him of practicing psychology without a license.
“I did not go there to diagnose her. I did not go there to treat her,” said McGraw, who added that he retired his Texas license after 25 years of private practice because of the demands of his “Dr. Phil” daytime talk show.
Still, in his statement to the media within hours of his visit to Spears McGraw said he was “convinced more than ever that she is in dire need of both medical and psychological intervention.”
He may not have put a label on Brit’s condition, but it sure sounds as though he was making a diagnosis (or at the very least a recommendation based on his “expertise.”)
Regardless, the point is it was hard to turn on the TV this week without seeing Dr. Phil blabbing about a topic he vowed he would no longer speak about.
Apparently, he learned nothing from his first public bashing.
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Dr. Phil Cancels Britney Intervention Show
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