Cheryl Hines is opening up about how she and husband Robert F. Kennedy Jr. managed to move forward following his highly publicized sexting controversy.
In her newly released memoir, Unscripted, Hines reveals how she first learned about the alleged digital relationship between Kennedy and journalist Olivia Nuzzi. While Kennedy was campaigning for the 2024 presidential election, Hines and her daughters took a much-needed break in Italy.
“Bobby called to warn me of another breaking story,” she wrote. “At first, it was an ambiguous story about a political journalist who said she had some communication with a former reporting subject that had turned personal, also stating that it was never physical. There was a lot of speculation that she was referring to Bobby. The press was running wild with it.”
Hines recalled that seeing the nonstop reports was emotionally exhausting.
“The swirl of headlines, rumors, and insinuations was upsetting and overwhelming. I had hit a wall.”
Nuzzi, then 31, was placed on leave by New York magazine after the alleged relationship — which reportedly developed during the campaign — became public. In a September 2024 statement, she acknowledged that “the nature of some communication” between herself and “a former reporting subject turned personal,” while emphasizing that she “did not directly report on the subject nor use them as a source” during that period.
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She clarified that it was never physical but should have been disclosed. The following month, New York confirmed she was no longer with the publication. She later joined Vanity Fair as West Coast editor.
At first, Hines tried to brush off the situation. Kennedy had previously faced intense scrutiny for his vaccine views and even offered her a “fake separation” to protect her career from the fallout. This felt like yet another wave of pressure that comes with public life.
“A presidential election is a big business,” Hines, 60, explained. “It seems like the people who put themselves in the middle of it get addicted to all the negative energies… there’s always something blazing.”
But as the days in Italy passed, her feelings shifted.
“This latest story was leaving me with the feeling of being unimportant to him… It was the end of the line for me.”
Eventually, Hines flew home, where Kennedy, then 70, picked her up so they could talk.
“I felt so distant from him… but I respected and adored our children too much not to listen to what Bobby had to say.”
What followed were several intense days of honesty and reflection.
“We stopped everything and drilled down on the truth. We locked ourselves in our room and laid it all on the table… what was true and what wasn’t. Through those soul-searching days, we tightened our ties that bind.”
While they have worked on their relationship since, the scandal continues to shadow Hines’ public appearances. She shared frustration about her October 14 interview on The View, where she hoped to discuss her book but was instead confronted almost entirely with questions about Kennedy.
“I don’t think the ladies on The View asked me one question about my book,” she told Billy Bush on his Hot Mics podcast. “But, you know, that’s okay.”
Unscripted is out now.
