SAN DIEGO (KGTV) - Among those reflecting on the passing of conservative TV evangelist Pat Robertson is a San Diego journalist who became his co-host for 'The 700 Club.'
“I hope his family and grandchildren, they have peace with it,” said Danuta Pfeiffer.
From her home in Oregon, Pfeiffer spoke about the death of Robertson, a man she once called co-host.
“I believe the man was sincere in his beliefs. He was not a hypocrite. In his lifetime, he’s done some good. But I also think he’s done some damage,” said Pfeiffer.
In 1983, after 16 years in San Diego as a journalist, including a TV anchor position, Pfeiffer accepted a job to head a new Jerusalem bureau for the Christian Broadcasting Network.
Instead, with days of arriving, Pfeiffer, a ‘born-again Christian’ and liberal feminist, was named Robertson's co-host on 'The 700 Club.'
Pfeiffer says she was one of the few people allowed to challenge him. She says once, he said on air, divorcees went on to become witches or lesbians.
“When he made outrageous statements, I kind of popped up and would say, ‘Wait a minute. You don't really mean that, do you?’” said Pfeiffer.
She said that allowed him to rephrase or re-explain his positions.
Pfeiffer says he was a man who wielded so much influence, and he knew it.
“He was a man caught up in money, and power, and politics,” said Pfeiffer.
She recalls a meeting, right before he announced his 1988 presidential run.
“He said the Lord spoken to him, that he was going to be the next President of the United States. At that point, several people fell to their knees and started praying,” said Pfeiffer.
Pfeiffer detailed her experience at CBN in her 2015 memoir, ‘Chiseled: A Memoir of Identity, Duplicity, and Divine Wine.’
After five years, Pfeiffer was let go. She says Robertson told her she was a political liability.
Pfeiffer says among the issues: she had been raped as a young girl, had a child out of wedlock, and she had married a man that had been married before.
”I was devastated. All of a sudden, God didn't love me. I had confused, as many people did, Pat Robertson and God,” said Pfeiffer.
Pfeiffer never spoke to Robertson again. She says she always hoped he would call one day to make amends, but he never did.
Pfeiffer says because of her experience at CBN she left behind all organized religion.
She and her husband own a winery in Oregon.
