ABC executives are said to be ‘fuming’ because Michael Strahan didn’t cut his vacation short to return and cover Hurricane Harvey — especially as a Houston native.
via Page Six:
A source told Page Six: “ABC News asked Strahan to come home from his vacation. He’s from Houston. But he refused and is still floating around on a yacht in Greece somewhere. ABC is really upset with him.”
Another source said that ABC staffers “just cannot believe he didn’t come back.”
But Michael Corn, senior executive producer of “GMA” told us, “I spoke with [Strahan] every day. Michael was very clear he wanted to be part of the coverage, and we decided the best plan was for him to lead the charge covering the recovery.”
Strahan’s rep further said, “They did not ask him to come back. He’s been in direct contact with his family — and thankfully they are doing fine. He is headed [to Houston] next week and will help in any way that he can.”
Miffing colleagues even more, Strahan was on the second week of his yacht vacation, sources said, having recently gone on a safari.
“GMA” vet Robin Roberts returned from her end-of-summer getaway to cover the tragedy. We hear Roberts was not asked to return, but did so voluntarily. At other networks, Anderson Cooper was reportedly scheduled to be off all week at CNN, but anchored his show from Houston on Wednesday.
Strahan’s vacation ends Monday, and we hear he’ll be in Houston next week for ABC and “GMA” beginning Tuesday.
He tweeted, “To my hometown of Houston and everyone there .?.?. I Love You and am praying for your safety. H-TOWN LOVE!”
Reports say he’ll host an upcoming telethon for Harvey victims with stars Jamie Foxx,Reese Witherspoon and Blake Shelton.
We reported earlier this year that Strahan has previously ruffled feathers by getting special attention when “others who have been working there longer don’t get that kind of treatment.” But a source groused, “That’s just bulls?-?-?t.”
Would you have cut your vacation short to go back to work?
