An on-air traffic reporter has drawn attention online after she addressed a viewer who harassed her in relation to her live appearance.
In a video that has gone viral, Leslie Horton, 59, who works for Canadian news outlet Global News, can be seen hosting her daily traffic show before making a comment targeting online trolls.
“I’ll respond to an email I just got and say, ‘Congratulations on your pregnancy,'” Horton said, adding that the email also said, “If you’re going to wear your old bus driver pants, you should wear them.” We expect emails like this.
She continued: “So, thanks for that. No, I’m not pregnant. I actually lost my uterus to cancer last year. This is what women my age look like.”
“So if it’s offensive to you, that’s unfortunate,” Horton added. “Think about the emails you send.”
Horton’s supporters took to social media after the network posted a video of the moment on X, formerly known as Twitter.
One commenter wrote: “Well done Leslie for standing up to rude people like this.”
Another wrote: “You look beautiful. Wouldn’t change a thing.”
Speaking to “Good Morning America” on Wednesday, Horton, who is now cancer-free, said she had no plan to respond to the on-air comment.
The news reporter explained that she usually “ignores” or “dismisses” any negative feedback she receives from viewers, but this particular remark hits very close to home.
“He’s a man [who] “He’s been sending nasty emails for about four years now…it’s been a pretty constant stream of emails,” she said. “And when I got that email during our show, last Wednesday morning, I had a visceral reaction to it. I was hurt and angry.”
She continued: “And I was determined in part because I was clear that this was not an appropriate thing to say. The email was intended to hurt me. To humiliate me. To embarrass me.”
Horton recently went through a health battle after being diagnosed with endometrial cancer nearly two years ago in December 2021. She said she lost her uterus during the trip and took a few months off from work and “slowly rebuilt my life.”
“Because any time you fight a battle with cancer, [it] It negatively impacts on many, many levels. “You have to know who you are going forward with, because life is before cancer and after cancer.”
Endometrial cancer is “a disease in which malignant (cancerous) cells form in the tissues of the lining of the uterus,” According to the National Cancer Institute. The National Cancer Institute said signs and symptoms of endometrial cancer include unusual vaginal bleeding or pelvic pain, and obesity and metabolic syndrome may increase the risk of endometrial cancer.
Horton said going through this experience has affected her “in every way,” adding that she is a true supporter of the community.
“So when I returned to my job, I had a new appreciation for the connections I was able to make with the community. Those were always very important to me,” she explained.
“I have a lot of gratitude for life. I think it has also taught me to be clear about who I am, what is important to me, and what I expect and behavior from others. This leads us to respond to inappropriate email.”
While discussing her reaction to an online troll’s comment that criticized her appearance, she said: “I thought you couldn’t do that. And it had to be what came from my heart. I didn’t have any plans. I responded. “I didn’t think anything more So. I returned to my desk and continued on with my day. Then things really blew up because of that. “
In her message to women facing similar criticism from others, she told GMA, “Your body is no one’s business. You have to decide how you feel about your body. If you are unhappy with it, there are a lot of things you can do.” “You can do it to feel better.”
“But you will look the same,” she said. “And you don’t need to apologize for it. You don’t need to accept people criticizing you and saying bad things on purpose to bring you down, because no one has the power to bring you down, except yourself.”
“Find out who you are on the inside, and then build it from there,” she added.
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