One of the more fascinating elements of the Coldplay Kiss Cam Gate™ is that when the camera landed on the couple at the center of it all — Andy Byron and Kristin Cabot, CEO and HR Chief of tech startup Astronomer, respectively, and married to other people — the pair were merely engaged in a spoon-hug. Granted, it looked intimate and they were holding hands; but there were still ways to play it off as no big deal. What sent the moment into overdrive was the couple’s kneejerk reactions to duck and cover. Nothing signals “I’m doing something I shouldn’t be” like immediately desisting from the verboten activity and hiding. Since that fateful July concert, Andy and Kristin have both resigned from Astronomer, and Kristin has filed for divorce from her husband Andrew Cabot. The Cabots have also been getting the backstory out that they were already separated before the Kiss Cam seen around the world. Well, now “a source close to” Kristin is speaking out, primarily to decry that there was no affair and the fallout has been deeply unfair.
Inappropriate hugging, but no affair: “Kristin and Andy [Byron] had an excellent working relationship, a great friendship. There was no affair,” the source tells PEOPLE. “It was inappropriate to be hugging your boss at a concert, and she accepts full responsibility for it,” the source says. “But the scandal, the downfall, the loss of the job — all of that is unfair.” … The moment thrust two couples — Byron and his reported spouse, Megan, and Cabot and her husband, Andrew — into the spotlight, fueling countless memes and headlines.
It could happen to any of us! “It is important to note how inappropriately mislabeled Kristin has been — as a homewrecker,” says the source, who notes Byron and Cabot attended the concert with a group of friends. “It’s unfathomable to witness what has happened, and how devastating it can be, for not just individuals, but entire families,” says the source. “All I can think of is that this could happen to any of us at any time. I think all of the misinformation has been the most mind-blowing to witness. These are real people and real families,” they say. “The way people have taken a lot of enjoyment at their expense, it’s hard to see.”
Kristin’s husband was also there “on a date”?? “Kristin and Andrew [Cabot] had been living apart,” the Cabot source says, adding that on the night Cabot was seen with Byron, her husband was also “at the Coldplay concert on a date.” “It was not a company event,” says the source of Byron and Cabot being together that night. “There was no company box. It was a night with a big group of friends and an inappropriate moment.”
The lack of privacy has been hard: As for how Cabot is doing, the source says, “It’s been hard for her to leave the house. She’s been prioritizing her family. Her kids have been through a lot.” … “Kristin had people standing outside her car while she was picking her son up from work, grown women laughing, taking pictures, pointing,” the source says. “It’s been a tough thing to watch.” … “In the first three days after the news broke, she had about 900 death threats on her phone,” the source says. “And just overall, the mockery made of someone, the way people really seem to enjoy it and feel as though if somebody makes a mistake — public shaming is absolutely on the table as a punishment.”
Focusing on the kids: Right now, the source says, Cabot “is making sure her kids are okay, and that’s going to take time. Kristin has a lot of family and friends around her that know who she really is and love her, and will all see her through this,” the source says, adding, “It will take time.”
The people I’ve always felt the most for in this messy situation are all the kids involved. Kristin has kids from a previous marriage, her now-estranged husband has kids from a previous marriage, and Andy Byron has kids with his current wife (or as People Mag referred to her, “his reported spouse, Megan”). I really hope all of these kids have solid support networks. And it’s also good that Kristin has support of her own from friends and family, including this devoted “source” who insists that Kristin is no homewrecker. The thing is, though, we’re still missing half the equation, right? The “source” can only speak to the parties she knows, the Cabots (and commenting that Andrew Cabot was also “on a date” at the concert sure seems like a telling admission). But if Byron “and his reported spouse” were not separated, then… yeah. And frankly, the Byrons don’t owe the public any explanation or clarification. I will say, that if Coldplay frontman Chris Martin championed the practice of conscious uncoupling, then this group is giving a master class in unconscious entanglement.
The lady doth protest too much, me thinks.
His hands are on her boobs. They aren’t just holding hands. He is her boss. She’s head of HR. That’s why they ducked.
Yeah, that.
He was, as we used to say in junior high, copping a feel. They weren’t simply holding hands, they were embracing and grooving to the tuned like a couple in an intimate relationship.
Even if they both were in open marriages and were perfectly fine with whatever the flock they were up to (which from all signs was NOT the case). there’s the part about him being the CEO and her being the head of HR of the same company, which is not okay. For about a dozen reasons.
Get a clue you two. The first step in rehabilitation of your images is to stop being entitled lying jerks.
I really feel back for their kids.
Exactly @North, this story had fallen off the radar and here she goes stirring it up again and claiming she is the victim. I would say this person is “not smart” and probably having a hard time finding a new job.
They both 100% deserved to be fired. He knew he could not survive and quit.
If we have to tell her why she should have been fired -nobody should hire her for ANY senior role.
wrapped around her Boobs, and not just holding hands…Their Hands were intimately intertwined- next level sh*t.
If she really cared about her children then she would stop going to the press about it. Stop reminding the public about this, we have moved on to other horrors and entertainment.
Waaaaaaa. BS to no affair/fliration. Fafo. Entitled narcissists hate nothing more than being called out on their own bull causing their own messes.
This sounds like either some sort of tactic in her divorce proceedings or she is having a hard time finding another job.
Or both. Otherwise, why Streisand Effect it?
It took them this much time to come up with this crappy story.
Her husband was overseas on business, they said when he was called about the story, he didn’t care, just they didn’t want to look stupid.
His first wife said she only got 1 million in their divorce settlement.
She and her husband (Cabot) had JUST bought a big house together. I don’t buy that they were separated, and I definitely don’t buy that this wasn’t an affair. Your boss is copping a feel!
Your own decisions traumatized your kids. Don’t blame it on us.
This! The husband was supposed to be in Tokyo or something and as noted they just bought a multi million dollar house.
I’m not sure if it’s her friends or Cabot (big ego there) put this out to save face.
And why now? They weren’t married that long, had no kids together so can’t imagine she’d get much of a settlement and I’m sure there was a prenup.
If I attended a concert with coworkers, I would not be standing in a hug like that with any of them, especially not a boss. Does her team really think that explanation would fly?
And she is a home wrecker, as is her boss. They both wrecked their families.
it was the ducking and hiding that made this a story. Even on the jumbotron, if they had just stayed in their “hugging” position, the camera would have moved on and that would have been the end of it.
But they acted guilty and like they were trying to hide their behavior which makes sense if they were doing something they shouldn’t have been doing.
Maybe, but it was also Gillette where it’s almost impossible to go to an event and not run into someone you know. Even if they hadn’t ducked odds are someone in their circles would have seen them, it just wouldn’t have become a national thing.
I’m assuming they were aware that was a risk when they attended since they’re based in Boston. And running into someone you may know isn’t the same as being caught on the jumbotron the way they were.
In the age of maga cult, people will believe anything that supports their established world view, as informed by lies from fox “news”
As the fascist administration lies at will, not even trying to make it sound true- this lady is like- screw it, just tell a total lie.
They both 100% deserved to be fired. He knew he could not survive and quit.
If we have to tell her why she should have been fired -nobody should hire her for ANY senior role.
And just when the world was forgetting about them, they are back with BS story.
Corporate management at its best.
This so-called friend does the guilty couple no favors by reminding everyone of the intimate embrace seen round the world. Take stupid chances, win stupid prizes. FAFO to the max.
They were reportedly kissing prior to the Jumbatron hugging. There was no need for Cabot’s source to have drudged this up. People would have forgotten and moved on by now.
It’s the MAGA method of don’t believe what your eyes see.
I don’t know why I’m feeling soft on this but I do see the source’s point, to a degree. She is a private citizen, not a CEO, not a politician, and even though she most likely was either having an affair or just acting in an inappropriate way, I’m not super comfortable with her basically being doxxed and threatened. To be honest it isn’t any of our business and they were just at a concert. If she was messing around with her boss then she should have some work consequences, but this woman is now infamous and most like can’t easily get another job. People have affairs and it’s awful for all involved when that happens but now the families are having their lives on blast. I do feel for all of them, except the idiot CEO who I’m sure will be just fine. Imagine f-ing up in your private life, as just a regular non-famous person, and the whole world watches as your world implodes. Not only watches, but feels the need to comment, mock and even harass. They were dumb and selfish but this is really a bit beyond what her consequences should be..
I suppose she should STFU about it then. If she wants it to die down — if she wants to escape these mean consequences — then telling an obvious lie is not going to help.
Think about it. If she really had her kids’ best interests at heart, why would she blatantly lie (not to mention cheat)?
(Oh, and this “report” from a “friend” was certainly vetted and enabled by Kristin Cabot.)
Exactly. Why the hell would she be bringing this up again when precisely no one cares anymore? A pair of low down dirty cheaters from the social class that likes to pretend their poo has no odor, but they’re tacky and messy.
If a person doesn’t want attention, stop inviting said attention, and someone wants attention to be bringing this up again.
@D, I agree. I don’t know anything about these people- hopefully they’re not MAGAts because I would hate to be defending one. But we don’t know for a fact that she’s lying about the state of her marriage- women getting falsely accused of cheating/homewrecking is something that happens, and it can be traumatic for the women who go through it. It’s a trauma that society does not want to take seriously. It’s easy to say just be quiet and don’t draw attention to yourself when it hasn’t happened to someone you care about, but I think most of the women saying that would absolutely react if they were falsely accused of cheating and it became public like that. It’s no surprise that the woman’s side is the side putting out a statement since women get most of the abuse when people suspect cheating, and since men don’t have to deal with the message that what people think they’ve done sexually= their worth.
Even if she is lying through her teeth, I think the fact that the people harassing her and promoting violent misogyny think they have the moral high ground says something sad about our priorities as a society.
My sympathy is with the CEO’s wife, who got cheated on and who is — wait for it! — a woman. Cabot was not falsely accused. Other photos show her kissing her married boss. Repeat: MARRIED. Let’s not talk about society’s priorities and morals when defending that. His wife and children did not ask to see him on-screen copping a feel, and that is exactly what he was doing.
If either one of them was in an open marriage, I’m sure the “friend” would have said so.
this is so hilarious because it’s the ultimate self-own. Again. The whole viral moment emerged from a self-own moment. This is yet another self-own. And here it seems opportune to elucidate the distinction between a “self-own” and “accountability.” That is, one is accidental, one is deliberate. LOL. One is to betray oneself, one is to keep faith with others. I mean. You could go on….. but in a broader view, I think this speaks to the warped nature of corporate culture and the way that HR is there to keep the gravy train on track. HR — more often than not — is called upon to shield the company from liability, not to get to the root of an issue. If it is called upon to get to the root of an issue, the issue is productivity, not personal well being. And as soon as there’s a conflict between the two, guess which is more important? …there wouldn’t be a conflict between the two, but for the fact that HR departments are routinely called upon to enable bad behaviour from bullies in upper management, because, no surprise, bullying is profitable. Not that being decent is not profitable, it just takes longer, more method, more discipline, more investment of time and focus, stamina, and people want a quick fix. So. I think that’s why this particular story caught fire: it neatly encapsulates in near allegorical fashion an illicit codependency that people intuitively recognise. It’s like a permanent conspiracy in which we’re trapped, and most of us are gauging its dimensions in the dark. To see it dragged into the light of day is purest schadenfreude.
Excellent post!
Maybe stfu and stop calling attention to yourselves? SMH.
“All I can think of is that this could happen to any of us at any time.”
I know the “friend” probably means in a general sense but it’s funny to think that any of us could at any time be caught getting felt up by our boss at a Coldplay concert.
I’m just sitting here in my pajamas and bam! Chris Martin and his kiss cam and my non-existent boss are here in my living room!
Yes, it’s pretty easy not to get caught cheating by… NOT CHEATING. Evidently this pair of brain trusts doesn’t understand that.
It’s true that anyone could be falsely accused of cheating/ homewrecking though. I’ve seen it happen to three different non-famous people, and in one of the cases I was actually there with the girl when this alleged cheating was supposed to have happened. It didn’t.
Chris Martin is the unsung hero of all of this. He called it out immediately!
They’re both idiots. She’s probably having a really hard time finding a new job. Especially in HR, OMG!
I’m sorry (ok not really) but this whole thing is freaking hilarious.
They know what they did. She’s an absolute narcissist to even bring it up again! Ok, it’s her whole world. But the actual whole world already stopped caring about it. And then she speaks up! Drrrrrrrr.
She should probably change her name and go into retail. Or waitressing! I bet she could make bank as a waitress. Not the kind of bank she’s accustomed to, but still.
I do feel sorry for the kids. And the spouses.
If she’s smart (no evidence for that, haha, but benefit of the doubt?) she will STFU.
Also, they should also be embarrassed about going to a Coldplay concert. No disrespect to CM, but, who does *that*?
If there was no affair, why would they care so much? Like, wouldn’t they just say they were friends being silly and leave it at that?
Yes, because the CEO of my company always wraps his arm around me and cups my boobies. On top of the picture of them literally kissing.
Call it what you want but they crossed the line morally and ethically. He was CEO and she was the HR Chief like how much worse can that get. Rules for thee but not for meeee!!!!
He’s rich, she’s rich, they never have to work another day. They just want their reputations back. Won’t happen they are both social media punching bags.
I just hope Andy’s wife grows a pair and leaves him.
That boob-cupping, spooning embrace we all saw is not the behavior of “just friends,” especially when at least 1 of them is still-married-not separated. Her marital status was in question right away. Early reports said she & hubs were “separated.” Even if the embrace didn’t signal “Oops, we’re caught,” their subsequent actions did – she covered her face with her hands & turned her back, he dropped to a crouch behind a barrier.
I cannot imagine that she really got 900 death threats. Nobody’s care that much. Finger pointing from school moms, yes. Sadly, the misbehaviors of adults can cause embarrassment & unwanted attention for their kids. Think first, peeps.
Her career isn’t ruined. She’ll find a company with a woman CEO & female execs who’ll be sympathetic to her humiliation, blame the guy, and & hire her. She should lose the “friend” who’s dredging up old dirt & contriving excuses because the only folks who’ll believe the “platonic” bit are also candidates to buy a bridge or fall for the Nigerian prince scam.
The “friend” is her newly-hired PR team.
I don’t know. I am not sure EU papers could publish this. By going to a Coldplay concert I would not assume that I agree to my picture being broadcast worldwide and commented on by the singer. Probably that was somewhere in the small print. But also: how can newspapers publish my picture and name if I am not a person of public interest and did not commit a crime. That is bonkers to me. Yes she made huge mistakes in her professional and personal life, but normally this should have consequences in her private life and with that one employer and not lead to her being branded with a scarlet letter forever. Even some of the comments here seem to imply she deserves to be publicly shamed and hounded because she cheated. I don’t agree. Everybody has a right to certain privacy. I am really worried about where social media is taking us. People digging until they find a name, finding out about how she bought property, all of that, for a private citizen not a criminal on the run. Investigated by righteous online warriors who obviously are all morally superior to her.
As a newspaper masthead once proclaimed if you don’t want to read about it in here, don’t let it happen.
If you don’t want people posting pictures of you spooning and canoodling with your boss at a public event attended by thousands, it’s simple: don’t go spooning and canoodling with your boss at a public event attended by thousands. Married or not, you two do you, boo, consenting adults etc (though as her boss he’s at risk for questions of consent)
But snogging the CEO when you’re the company’s top HR exec has implications for your reputation, your co-workers and the people who report to you. Bad judgement, bad choices on your part don’t give you a pass.