Dancing with Paula Deen?

Reports have surfaced that Dancing with the Stars may try to lure Paula Deen to compete next season. Could it help repair her image? INSIDE EDITION has the latest.

Is embattled Paula Deen breaking out her dance shoes for the new season of Dancing with the Stars?

The celebrity chef has been approached to join the cast of ABC's dance contest this fall, according to a report on VH1.

ABC had no comment.

Deen had been asked to do the show before in 2010, but turned it down saying, "Fat girls don't look good sweating."  

Appearing on Dancing With The Stars could be exactly what Deen needs to rehabilitate her shattered image. A polarizing figure like Deen could also help the show's falling ratings.  

Public relations expert, Mike Paul told INSIDE EDITION, "Dancing with the Stars, if she comes on, it's a win-win for them. They have nothing to lose. Paula Deen, it could potentially be good for her. If, somehow, we find out, number one, that she's an amazing dancer we didn't know that she was."

Meanwhile, many people are asking why Deen's use of a racial slur thirty years ago has led to the collapse of her empire, while Alec Baldwin is getting off easy for using a gay slur.

The actor and Capital One spokesman threatened a reporter from the London Daily Mail who accused Baldwin's wife, Hilaria, of tweeting during James Gandolfini's funeral.

"I'm gonna find you George Stark, you toxic little queen, and I'm gonna (blank) you up," Baldwin tweeted.

The website later admitted that the report was inaccurate.

CNN's Anderson Cooper, who is gay, tweeted: "Why does Alec Baldwin get a pass when he uses gay slurs? If a conservative talked of beating up a 'queen' they would would be vilified."

And Today show star Kathie Lee says said, "There should be a one standard for everybody," she said.

Baldwin has now issued a formal apology, saying in a letter to gay activist group GLAAD:

"As someone who fights against homophobia, I apologize."

Baldwin tried to explain his use of the word "queen," telling Gothamist.com, "A queen to me has a different meaning. It's somebody who's just above. It doesn't have any necessarily sexual connotations."
 
Baldwin has, perhaps wisely, shut down his Twitter account, but his wife is still active. Hilaria even poked fun at the controversy over the weekend posting a picture with the caption:

"Our friend telling my husband that the gay community is only going to give him one more chance."