--- description: Amid new allegations against him, former reality star Josh Duggar has put out a statement admitting he has been unfaithful to his wife. title: Josh Duggar Says He's 'the Biggest Hypocrite Ever' image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blta2461295801ea0aa/6988520af887dca318e90a9d/josh-duggar1.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [U.S.](/section/us/) ## U.S. Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [celebrities](/tag/celebrities/) ## celebrities Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Josh Duggar: ‘I Have Been the Biggest Hypocrite Ever’ ## Video: The Financial Implications For Ashley Madison Couples [Watch (HLS stream): The Financial Implications For Ashley Madison Couples](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/pIDl5nU4.m3u8) (1:43)  _Published 2015-08-19. Hackers have released nearly 10GB of stolen data from cheating site Ashley Madison. Can that information be used in potential divorce cases?_  by [Tessa Berenson](/author/tessa-berenson/)  ## Tessa Berenson Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Updated: Jan 24, 2024 1:39 PM CUTPublished: Aug 20, 2015 6:43 PM CUT  Josh Duggar speaks during the 42nd annual Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) at the Gaylord National Resort Hotel and Convention Center in National Harbor, Md., on Feb. 28, 2015. Josh Duggar speaks during the 42nd annual Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) at the Gaylord National Resort Hotel and Convention Center in National Harbor, Md., on Feb. 28, 2015.Kris Connor—Getty Images  by [Tessa Berenson](/author/tessa-berenson/)  ## Tessa Berenson Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Updated: Jan 24, 2024 1:39 PM CUTPublished: Aug 20, 2015 6:43 PM CUT Former reality TV star Josh Duggar [acknowledged](http://www.duggarfamily.com/2015/8/statements-from-jim-bob-and-michelle-duggar-and-josh-duggar "undefined") Thursday that he had an addiction to pornography and had been “unfaithful” to his wife, in a statement responding to [recent reports](http://www.people.com/article/josh-duggar-ashley-madison-account-cheating-molestation-scandal "undefined") about the family values activist’s behavior. “I have been the biggest hypocrite ever,” Duggar, who was featured in [the now-cancelled show _19 Kids and Counting_](http://time.com/3960774/19-kids-and-counting-canceled-duggar/ "undefined"), said in the [statement](http://www.duggarfamily.com/2015/8/statements-from-jim-bob-and-michelle-duggar-and-josh-duggar "undefined") posted on the Duggar family website. “While espousing faith and family values, I have secretly over the last several years been viewing pornography on the internet and this became a secret addiction and I became unfaithful to my wife,” Duggar added. His statement was later changed online to omit any mention of pornography. This admission comes [amid reports](http://www.people.com/article/josh-duggar-ashley-madison-account-cheating-molestation-scandal "undefined") that Duggar, the former executive director for the conservative lobbying group Family Research Council, had a paid account on the adultery website Ashley Madison. And it comes just months after revelations that he molested underage girls when he was a teenager, including two of his younger sisters. Those revelations led to the eventual cancellation of the TLC reality show about the large family. Duggar did not make any specific mention of reports that he had an Ashley Madison account in his statement, allegations that sprung from [a massive hack of the website](http://time.com/4002647/ashley-madison-hackers-data-released-impact-team/ "undefined"). “I brought hurt and a reproach to my family, close friends and the fans of our show with my actions that happened when I was 14-15 years old, and now I have re-broken their trust,” he said. Read the full statement from the Duggar family below. --- > “” --- _Read next:_ [_TLC’s Child-Abuse Documentary Should Not Include the Duggars_](http://time.com/3961974/tlc-duggars-child-abuse-documentary/?iid=time%5Freadnext "undefined") [_Listen to the most important stories of the day_](http://time.com/newsletter/the-brief/autoplay/?xid=spl-fullbrief-article "undefined") ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4005281/josh-duggar-ashley-madison-scandal/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4005281/josh-duggar-ashley-madison-scandal/"},"headline":"Josh Duggar: ‘I Have Been the Biggest Hypocrite Ever’","datePublished":"2015-08-20T18:43:26.000Z","dateModified":"2024-01-24T13:39:08.000Z","description":"Former 19 Kids and Counting star says he was \"unfaithful\" to his wife","url":"https://time.com/4005281/josh-duggar-ashley-madison-scandal/","keywords":["celebrities","josh duggar"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blta2461295801ea0aa/6988520af887dca318e90a9d/josh-duggar1.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Tessa Berenson","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/tessa-berenson/"}],"articleSection":"U.S.","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blta2461295801ea0aa/6988520af887dca318e90a9d/josh-duggar1.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Josh Duggar","caption":"Josh Duggar","creditText":"Kris Connor—Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/us/","name":"U.S."}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/celebrities/","name":"celebrities"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4005281/josh-duggar-ashley-madison-scandal/","name":"Josh Duggar: ‘I Have Been the Biggest Hypocrite Ever’"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"The Financial Implications For Ashley Madison Couples","description":"Hackers have released nearly 10GB of stolen data from cheating site Ashley Madison. 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