I am a big fan of memorials. I was a bit put out when the London Olympics didn’t have a moment of silence to honor the Israeli athletes that were murdered during the Munich games 40 years ago. Every September 11th, I try to watch a documentary – one of the gut wrenching ones – so I will remember the pain I felt that day and to pray for the victims and those they left behind.
So needless to say, I was appalled today when I read that “The Today Show” chose to speak with Kris Jenner at 8:46 am today, the exact time the first plane hit the World Trade Center 11 years ago today. Most other cable networks and the major network morning shows – “Good Morning America” and “CBS This Morning” – all provided coverage of the memorials going on today in New York City, Shanksville, Pennsylvania, and Washington, D.C. At the White House, the President and First Lady led a moment of silence.
But, “The Today Show” ran an interview with Kris Jenner, wife of Olympian Bruce Jenner and mama of all those Kardashians – Kourtney, Kim, Khloe, and Robert Jr.
Jenner talked about a good topic I guess – women having breast implants reduced. Jenner pointed out that it is necessary to “change them after 10 years… it was so important, health-wise, to remind women to check your expiration date because it’s a health risk.”
But then she also talked about Kim and boyfriend Kanye West, saying West was “really a great guy” and that “I think they are well suited for each other and I think they are really, really happy and anybody who has kids knows that when your kids are happy, you are happy.”
NBC received quite a bit of backlash from their viewers over their decision. Many viewers tweeted a call for an NBC boycott due to the decision to forgo the memorial.
In its defense, a spokesperson for NBC said that “The Today Show dedicated a considerable amount of time to September 11th coverage this morning throughout the entire show.”
Still, it seems pretty disrespectful to me.