Alec Baldwin told Howard Stern on Tuesday that he was "shocked" at harsh criticism levied against him by CNN's Anderson Cooper, who called out the 30 Rock star for using anti-gay slurs and violent language in a Twitter outburst earlier this month.
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The tirade, which led to Baldwin deleting his account, erupted after Daily Mail reporter George Stark wrote that Baldwin's wife, Hilaria, had tweeted using her smartphone during James Gandolfini's funeral. Baldwin tweeted, "I'm gonna find you, George Stark, you toxic little queen, and I'm gonna fuck...you...up." He then wrote, "[I']d put my foot up your fucking ass, George Stark, but I'm sure you'd dig it too much."
Cooper later tweeted about Baldwin's outburst, "Why does #AlecBaldwin get a pass when he uses gay slurs? If a conservative talked of beating up a 'queen' they would be vilified."
Asked on Tuesday by Stern about the incident, Baldwin begins, "Anderson Cooper decides to, to, to, to --"
"He attacked you!" Stern baits.
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"Whatever word you want to use, I'm not going to say 'attacked,' " Baldwin offers, then admits, "That was the one that shocked me the most."
"Anderson Cooper said that he felt that you were being homophobic in your comments on Twitter," the radio host explains.
"But he used another word. He used 'despicable,' " Baldwin recalls, incorrectly.
Asked what he would say to Cooper about the allegations if the two were to cross paths, Baldwin replies, "Nothing, actually."
