Sunny Hostin Says Media Went 'Backwards' with Firings of Don Lemon and Tiffany Cross (Exclusive)

Hostin was among the attendees Friday at the second annual "Politics & Inclusion" event, a pre-White House Correspondents Dinner

Sunny Hostin, co-host on ABC's The View, told PEOPLE that she thinks the media went "backwards a bit" with the abrupt firings of CNN's Don Lemon and MSNBC's Tiffany Cross.

Lemon was the co-host of CNN This Morning and Cross hosted The Cross Connection on Saturday mornings. Lemon, 57, was fired last week from the network, on which he had been a media personality for 17 years. Cross, 44, departed MSNBC last November.

Hostin was among the attendees Friday at the second annual "Politics & Inclusion" dinner, a pre-White House Correspondents Dinner event, which was sponsored by Google and Walmart this year. The event was co-hosted by Abby Phillip, CNN weekend anchor and Lauren Wesley Wilson, founder and CEO of ColorComm Inc.

Related:Don Lemon Fired by CNN: 'I Am Stunned'

Hostin shared her thoughts when asked for her assessment of diversity in the media compared to a year ago.

"I'd like to see improvement with more representation. I thought, you know, we were in a place where we had people and voices like Don Lemon and like Tiffany Cross. And I think we're seeing the media go backwards a bit when you're looking at people that have been the voice of news and addressing head-on in an unfiltered and unvarnished way, the real-life and lived experience of people of color," she said.

"So I'm pretty disappointed, actually, in the state of things, but I'm hopeful when you see a room like this, that there are going to be a bunch of young journalists that will be vulnerable and fearless and go after it," Hostin added.

Hostin emphasized that she is "biased" as it relates to the Lemon situation, specifically.

Related:A Timeline of CNN Host Don Lemon's Controversies

"I am biased because I've been his friend for 10 years. Our offices were right across the hall from each other at CNN. I vacationed with him. I know him extremely well, and it doesn't make sense to me. It is not my experience with him. It is not the experience that I saw with other journalists," she said.

"I was on the ground with him in Ferguson. I was on the ground with him in South Carolina for the shootings there, the church. I have covered many stories, and he has made sure to look out for me. He has made sure to give me airtime. I know for a fact when there have been allegations against some of his team members, he has spoken up and spoken out for women. So it's unfortunate that this narrative is coming out — or is being played out — because I don't think it's true," she added.

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CBS Mornings co-host Gayle King was also asked for her view of diversity in the media landscape over the last year.

"Well, you already know, we still have a long way to go. I can't honestly say, 'look what's happened in a year,'" she said at the dinner. "It's why we're still here doing this."

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