To celebrate Valentine’s Day, ABC’s “Good Morning America” turned to one of the most popular stunts on TV: the live wedding proposal. “GMA” added a twist, however: the couple had to get married live on the show… less than an hour after the proposal.
Jezebel’s Jessica Coen takes issue with the stunt, noting that the bride, Melissa, clearly was thinking about a wedding, but that at the end of the day she had no say in it. The bridesmaids, the flowers, the officiant and the colors were all chosen by “GMA”. The only input Melissa had in the wedding was choosing between four dresses that were pre-selected based on pics to her Pinterest page.
Update: Her now-husband was the one who came up with the idea: “While a “wedding in a flash” was slightly risky, it was in keeping with the couple’s adventurous courtship, Bondy assured.”
The gist of Coen’s critique is after the jump, though it is worth noting that Melissa told ABCNews.com once the cameras stopped rolling:
“They say your wedding day is one of the most amazing days of your life and this is one of the top two now for me,” Cohn said. “I never thought I’d get married on television. This is amazing to get married on ‘GMA.'”
The idea that one’s wedding day is special, even if it’s as low-key as they come, is something deeply ingrained in our culture. As it should be; mutually agreeing to spend your lives together is a big deal, to say the least. Brian and Melissa’s wedding may have been special, but probably not the kind of special Melissa was expecting. And it sure as hell wasn’t personal. On live television, with Sam Champion tweeting the shit out of it and Josh Elliot giving play-by-plays like a sportscaster of love, how could it be?
Aside from saying yes and picking what to wear from a limited selection of dresses, Melissa had no agency in her own wedding.