LOS ANGELES - As Alec Baldwin's angry words to his daughter were being broadcast around the world, the 49-year-old actor explained himself Friday on his website.
"Although I have been told by numerous people not to worry too much, as all parents lose their patience with their kids, I am most saddened that this was released to the media because of what it does to a child,'' he wrote.
"I'm sorry, as everyone who knows me is aware, for losing my temper with my child. I have been driven to the edge by parental alienation for many years now. You have to go through this to understand. (Although I hope you never do.) I am sorry for what happened. But I am equally sorry that a court order was violated, which had deliberately been put under seal in this case.''
A voicemail Baldwin left for his 11-year-old daughter, in which he can be heard calling her "a rude, thoughtless little pig,'' was published Thursday by celebrity news site TMZ.com.
Baldwin and his ex-wife, Kim Basinger, have been engaged in bitter custody disputes over their daughter, Ireland, since the couple divorced in 2002.
"In such public cases, your opponents attempt to take a picture of you on your worst day and insist that this is who you are as a person,'' Baldwin wrote. "Outside the doors of divorce court, I have friends, I have respect from people I work with and I have a normal relationship with my daughter. All of that is threatened whenever one enters a court room.''
Meanwhile, Baldwin's attorney, Vicki Greene, said she filed a court order Friday "to determine how the tape got leaked and to determine whether actions should be taken again Kim Basinger, or her attorneys, or Harvey Levin (who runs TMZ.com) and anybody else associated with the leaking of the tape and the violation of the court orders to keep the proceedings closed.''
Greene told TV's "The Insider'' that "anyone involved in this case should want to protect Ireland, so whatever happened was either intentional, reckless or negligent.''
The matter is set for a hearing June 5, Greene said.
Basinger's attorney, Neal Hersh, weighed in the family saga Friday on TMZ.com.
"I am concerned that Mr. Baldwin's recent statement, wherein he attempts to shift responsibility to Kim and her lawyers for his issues with Ireland, shows just how out of touch he is with the reality and gravity of the situation,'' Hersh said.
Basinger's spokeswoman had no comment Friday.
