Jenny McCarthy denies ever criticizing her cousin, and fellow funny lady, Melissa McCarthy about her weight, calling the rumors “hurtful.”

Jenny McCarthy Blasts Tabloid Rumors

When the story claiming that she told Melissa that she would need to lose weight if she wanted to make it in Hollywood came out, McCarthy dismissed it on Twitter, calling it “bulls—t.”

McCarthy addressed the issue again in a recent interview.

“There is a crazy story going around that I once told my cousin, Melissa, that she would have to lose weight in order to get into show business. Nothing could be further from the truth,” McCarthy told People.

In fact, McCarthy helped Melissa get her start with her first television job on McCarthy’s short-lived comedy show, The Jenny McCarthy Show (1997).

“When she was starting out, I was fortunate enough to be in a position to get her a job on a show I was doing, to learn the ropes and get some experience on a TV set in front of the camera and behind the scenes,” McCarthy said.

McCarthy clarified that she is not claiming responsibility for Melissa’s success, praising her cousin, saying, “She has accomplished everything she has accomplished through hard work and her extraordinary talent, and I’ve only ever encouraged and supported and wished her the very best.”

As to the rumors that McCarthy has not invited her cousin to her impending wedding to Donnie Wahlberg, those are true, but that is only because the ceremony will be extremely small.

“Donnie and I are planning a very intimate ceremony that will involve a very small group of our closest friends and that’s it – not a huge production with hundreds of friends and extended families.”

McCarthy added her disapproval of tabloid gossip that is aimed at creating conflict between family members, saying, “It’s hurtful that people make up stories that pit not just families, but specifically women, against each other.”

Jenny McCarthy Apologizes For Hilary Clinton Joke

The idea of standing up against female-on-female conflict, specifically when it comes to Hollywood or media gossip, is one McCarthy is particularly passionate about.

In a recent blog post, McCarthy apologized for a joke she made about Hilary Clinton while on The View and mentioned the rumors about her and her cousin. Last week, while discussing a rumor about the Clinton’s marriage, McCarthy joked that perhaps Bill Clinton and Hilary Clinton both have their own girlfriends on the side.

Later in the show, McCarthy spoke about the importance of women looking out for each other, and she took to her blog to apologize for her contradictory statements.

“I recently sent out a tweet shaming a tabloid for spreading a false story about my cousin and me. I was amazed that one day they could write something wonderful and the following day spew hurtful lies. Except today I realized I am no better than they are. Shame on me, too. If we are all reflections of what we see, today I saw the hypocrite in me,” McCarthy wrote.