Forbes‘ Jeff Bercovici interviews ABC News president Ben Sherwood. “Good Morning America” was a significant part of the conversation, and Bercovici pressed Sherwood on whether “GMA’s ratings wins were coming at the expense of hard news, citing the recent guest-hosting appearance of Ann Romney, and Sarah Palin on competitor “Today.”
[Long pause] I think that “Good Morning America,” every morning, comes right out of the box at 7 a.m. with an incredibly aggressive mix of everything people need to stat their day. You’ve got George Stephanopoulos explaining the political world, you’ve got Sam Champion chasing the biggest weather around the country, you’ve got Josh Elliot telling folks what the big news around the world is, you’ve got Lara Spencer with all the entertainment and lifestyle information, and you’ve got Robin, who is the heart and soul of our program, who is on medical leave right now.Once in a while…we book all kinds of guests on the program. Typically they’re newsmakers and they’re there to add some life to the program. I think the audience gets it. I think the audience understands what they’re there for. While Robin’s away healing from her bone marrow transplant, we’ve got an entire range of people coming in who want to be there for her, want to support her and want to show some solidarity for what she’s going through. Whether that’s Oprah Winfrey, or Sofia Vergara, Ann Romney — I think the audience understands what that’s about.
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