Kate Gosselin says she tried to shield kids from 2009 divorce fallout

Kate Gosselin said she tried to shield her children from the fallout of her 2009 divorce from Jon Gosselin, telling viewers during a TikTok Live on Wednesday, Aug. 27, that she aimed to keep the split as peaceful as possible for their eight children and avoided hiring an attorney intent on stirring conflict. The former reality star said she did not "buy into all the drama and the hate and the ugly" and that, despite her efforts, "a lot of things happened that I could not control that did not turn out well for my kids."

On the livestream, Kate, 50, reiterated that her decisions at the time were guided by how she wanted to be treated and by what she believed would be best for the children. She said she "did my best" and that the divorce "could have been a lot calmer and a lot nicer if everybody was willing to play nice." She also has blamed prolonged legal battles for contributing to financial strain in later years.

The Gosselins married in 1999 and rose to public prominence when their family was featured on a reality series from 2007 through 2009 that later continued under Kate's name. The couple share twin daughters Madelyn and Cara, now 24, and sextuplets Collin, Hannah, Joel,...