CBS’ “The Early Show” got the most out of its late add Adam Lambert this morning. Lambert, who was scheduled to appear on GMA this morning, was canceled by ABC late yesterday morning due to his sexually charged performance at the AMAs Sunday night.
On “Early,” a story and interview aired in the 7:30am half hour, Lambert answered viewer questions in the 8am half hour before performing the first of two songs at 8:42am.
In the interview with Maggie Rodriguez, Lambert said the outrage after his AMA performance was a “double whammy.”
“I think it’s because I’m a gay male and I think people haven’t seen that before,” said Lambert.
Asked if he would do anything differently, Lambert laughed and said, “I would sing it a little bit better.” Lambert then assured parents watching that his morning show concert “is appropriate, I promise.”
Interestingly, in the story leading up to Lambert’s interview, the kiss and the crotch smash, which were part of his AMA act were blurred out, but in the same story, Madonna’s kiss with Britney Spears at the 2003 VMAs was not, leading some to accuse CBS of a double standard. Or it may be, as ABC News told us yesterday, that that kind of performance just isn’t appropriate “so early in the morning.”
After his first song, Lambert’s mom came to the stage and Rodriguez asked her what she thought of the controversy surrounding the AMA performance: “I was a little taken aback,” she said, “but I just went with the flow.”
As for morning show leader the “Today” show, EP Jim Bell tells the AP’s David Bauder they did not consider booking Lambert because the show already had planned a performance with NBC’s artist in resident Jon Bon Jovi.
> Update: Video of the interview, after the jump…