An onscreen graphic hyperbolically asserted, "Redford Goes Green: Hollywood Legend Saves The Planet" and Champion said of the actor, "But now, he’s a pioneer for the environment." Redford goes green? Now, he’s a pioneer for the environment? It’s more than a little disingenuous for the GMA anchor to try and pass Redford’s liberalism as something new.
In 2006, for example, Redford attacked President Bush’s energy policy as a "disaster" and "an insult."
In the segment, which aired at 8:51am on May 2, Champion seemed to indicate that because Redford has starred in films with scenic backgrounds, his commitment to the environment is obvious:
Sam Champion: "From the arid wild west of ‘Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid,’ to the lush Savannahs in ‘Out of Africa,’ the environment has long been a co-star in many of Robert Redford's films. The big screen clearly shows his personal commitment to the planet and with global warming making headlines, Redford’s finding growing support for his green sentiment."
Robert Redford: "I think a lot of people want to act. I think they want to feel they can have a role to play in their future."
Champion: "Now, In his newest role, Robert Redford is behind the scenes and the environment is taking center stage. It’s a new weekly primetime series, ‘The Green,’ highlighting individuals and solutions to the problems facing our planet."
Redford: "To me, the great, exciting thing about it is that those new ideas will create new innovations and those innovations will lead to new industries, which will lead new jobs, which changes the economy. I think people want to know what, what can be done of a positive nature, particularly what they can do personally."
Champion closed the segment by noting some of the "extreme" solutions that will be offered in Mr. Redford’s new show:
Champion: "So, the show takes on topics and people. Now, among the innovators featured in ‘The Green,’ some of them are extreme, like the guy who runs his car on leftover fried chicken oil and a woman who makes clothes out of soda bottles. She actually does. Uh, I don’t know. It’s a look at what’s new and it’ll always be exciting and what’s new in an eco-friendly world. And you can see ‘The Green’ on Tuesdays on the Sundance Channel."
In the past, Sam Champion has adopted a variety of tactics to promote liberal environmental initiatives. One strategy is to tout celebrities, such as when he highlighted the Oscars going green. On another occasion, he promoted "elite and sexy" stars who support liberal policies.
Other times, the GMA host inserts environmental issues into seemingly innocuous stories. In April, he discussed "green weddings."
Finally, when all else fails, ABC’s weatherman will simply scold viewers for contributing to global warming.
