TVSpy
CBS’s Harry Smith is scheduled to undergo a routine colonoscopy at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center on Wednesday morning. Making the procedure less routine, though, is the fact that it will be broadcast live on national television.
CBS News announced on Monday that, in an effort to draw attention to the procedure, Smith will file live reports from the medical center as he undergoes the colonoscopy. According to CBS, it will be the first time that “an anchor has had a colonoscopy live on network television.”
According to the New York Daily News, Katie Couric convinced Smith to have the procedure live on the air. Couric lost her husband to colon cancer in 1998 and had NBC cameras on-hand in 2000 when she underwent a colonoscopy.
“I’m all for destigmatizing the process,” Smith told the Daily News.
Musician Peter Yarrow made an appearance on the “Early Show” on Tuesday morning and played a song about his own experiences having a colonoscopy. While strumming his guitar, Yarrow sang, “When I had my colonoscopy, I had a question on my mind: Do we all look the same when a doctor sees us from behind?” Hopefully “Early Show” viewers won’t be able to answer this question tomorrow morning.