In the second installment of a two-part interview on Good Morning America, Clay Aiken clashed with Diane Sawyer for asking him whether he is gay.

"I don't understand why you want to know. I don't understand why it's any of your business. At some point, [the question] becomes just really rude, you know?" he said Thursday.

Clay Aiken has, sadly, been the subject of gossip about his sexuality ever since he became a star on American Idol in 2003.

Sawyer went right after him, asking at the top of the interview if he was "ready to come out and say you're gay."

"That would not make sense for me do to that," Aiken said.

"You think I'm rude for asking?" Sawyer asked.

"I've gotten to a point where I feel it's invasive. Forget it. What I do in my private life is nobody's business anymore, period. I don't think you're rude because I figure people have a job to do," replied Aiken, whose album, A Thousand Different Ways, was released this week. "I just don't understand why people care, to be honest with you. anymore... This is a waste of my time."

Sawyer's questions, understandably, drew criticism from Clay's fans and gay groups.

"Media speculation about people's sexual orientation is not something we support," said Damon Romine, an official of the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD). "Coming out is a very personal, private decision that needs to be made by the individual."

GMA viewers also expressed their outrage at the treatment of the former American Idol star and global humanitarian.

"A person has a right to his or her privacy," one viewer wrote on the GMA message board. "Clay is trying to preserve this. I agree with him. What difference does it make?"

"Clay Aiken seems tired and beaten down by this issue," wrote another viewer. "People with no lives buy into the media speculation on his sex life ... Now, Mr. Aiken sees this is a no-win."

Seriously, can't people leave Clay alone? This is a man who gives so much back to the world. If he were gay, that wouldn't change any real fan's opinion of him. More importantly, it's no one's business but his. Personal privacy is a basic desire, and one Clay certainly deserves.

Matt Richenthal is the Editor in Chief of TV Fanatic. Follow him on Twitter and on Google+.