Good Morning America is not a serious news show. But even by the loose standards of ABC, the program's journalists set a new standard for cynicism. On Tuesday, hosts both hyped a reckless daredevil and later condemned such people. At 7:15am, news reader Amy Robach enthused, "One daredevil is surely at the top of his game! Take a look at his latest stunt. He's the first person in the world to stand on top of the arch that rises nearly 450 feet over London's Wembley stadium."
Robach and the GMA crew marveled at James Kingston as video played of the man walking, with no net, barely keeping steady as he risked his life. (Kingston has been previously arrested for such stunts.) Less than 30 minutes later, the show changed course and chided such dangerous activity. Lara Spencer scolded, "We're back now with a warning for parents about a dangerous trend. It's called car surfing, riding on the outside of a vehicle while it's moving."
Reporter Kayna Whitworth explained why riding outside of a moving car is a bad idea: "People are dying doing this and here's the thing: The car doesn't even have to be going that fast."
To recap, walking 450 feet above Wembley stadium is fun and exciting. But car surfing is bad? Just last month, an extreme climber died while attempting to base jump off of a cliff at Yosemite National Park. It would seem that showing these videos only encourages more of them.
Co-anchor George Stephanopoulos closed the car surfing segment by lecturing, "It's amazing we even need this warning. It's crazy." Given GMA's tendency to hype dangerous and stupid stunts, the show's reporters don't have much moral authority to condemn other dangerous and stupid stunts.
Other examples of GMA superficiality:
GMA Allows No Coverage on Clinton Donations; 12 Minutes on Avengers
Partial transcripts of both segments are below:
GMA
6/9/15
7:14AMY ROBACH: And one daredevil is surely at the top of his game. Take a look at his latest stunt. He's the first person in the world to stand on top of the arch that rises nearly 450 feet over London's Wembley stadium. It took three months to plan his climb up to the top and told fans the stunning view cops with a don't try this at home warning. Fair enough, didn't need that warning. 24-year-old James Kingston. I like how people describe him, an urban adventurer.
7:42
LARA SPENCER: And we're back now with a warning for parents about a dangerous trend. It's called car surfing, riding on the outside of a vehicle while it's moving. A Utah dad now sounding the alarm after his 13-year-old daughter was nearly killed doing it. ABC's Kayna Whitworth is here with the story. Good morning to you, kayna.
KAYNA WHITWORTH: Lara, good morning to you. So, Sydney's father has had enough and using a very scary image to show the world the dangers of car surfing. People are dying doing this and here's the thing, the car doesn't even have to be going that fast. Experts say moving as slow as five miles an hour can have fatal consequences. It's the disturbing stunt happening more than you think. People surfing on cars, passengers, even drivers seen anywhere but inside and buckled in. No waves, no wake, a safer surf on the web and thousands of videos like that pop up. This high risk hang ten not left to the younger generations, this 52-year-old man busted last month. Many inspired by movies like Fast and Furious. But in real life these stunts can turn deadly.
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GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: It's amazing we even need this warning. It's crazy.
