CNN Plays 'Only the Good Die Young' After Segment About Sikh Temple Shootings

August 6th, 2012 10:48 AM

UPDATE AT END OF POST: CNN issues apology.

Eight days after playing the song "Stupid Girls" before a story about former Alaska governor Sarah Palin, the scoring geniuses at CNN were at it again.

After coming out of a break following a long segment about the Sikh temple shootings in Wisconsin, viewers of Monday's Starting Point were treated to Billy Joel's "Only the Good Die Young" (video follows with transcribed highlights and commentary):

At  8:37 AM, substitute co-host Ali Velshi opened a segment with the breaking news from Wisconsin that the suspected Sikh temple shooter was former Army soldier Wade Michael Page.

Narinder Singh, the chairman of the board of trustees for the Sikh Coalition was then introduced to discuss the massacre and inform viewers about his religion.

After about a six minute discussion, the program cut to a commercial break. Upon return, viewers were greeted with Billy Joel:

Well, they showed you a statue, told you to pray
They built you a temple and locked you away
Ah but they never told you the price that you pay,
For the things that you might have done...
Only the good die young
That's what I said
Only the good die young
Only the good die young.


For those not familiar with Starting Point, the show allows guest contributors to offer a song playlist for their appearances.

This little diddy was chosen by guest Hank Sheinkopf.

Honestly, on a day when the nation is grieving a massacre at a temple, couldn't someone at CNN notice how inappropriate this was, especially following a segment about the shootings?

*****Update: CNN has issued an apology.