Michael Strahan is standing by the Chris Johnson interview that drew sharp criticism in the days after it aired.
The Good Morning America host spoke with the former Tennessee Titans running back late last month as Johnson revealed he has ALS, the progressive neurological disease that slowly destroys motor neurons in the brain and spinal cord. The roughly seven-minute conversation was meant to center on Johnson’s diagnosis and the life changes that have followed, but some media figures took issue with Strahan for not pressing harder on the connection researchers have drawn between football-related head trauma and ALS.
Strahan addressed the backlash on The Dan Patrick Show and made it clear he had no interest in turning Johnson’s announcement into a confrontation.
'I actually thought about that, because I saw everybody [saying] 'you should have asked this, you should have asked that'. Well you should have got the interview, how about that?' Strahan said with a chuckle.
He said the point of the segment was to let Johnson tell his own story.
'That was Chris' moment for Chris to share the story which Chris wanted to share,' the Pro Football Hall of Famer explained. 'And when I got the call that Chris wanted to share that he had ALS, that was the story. It wasn't for me to try and grandstand'.
Strahan added that he sees the interviewer’s role as keeping the focus where it belongs.
"As an interviewer, our job is to deliver information. I'm not trying to get a bigger name for myself by putting somebody else in an uncomfortable position."
He continued: 'I was there as a service to Chris for what Chris wanted people to know about his life and where he was now. I was not there to make a story about myself or get a big headline. That's what it wasn't about'.
Strahan also said the criticism missed what he did cover in the interview.
'The headlines were about Chris, [which] is where they needed to be,' Strahan added. 'I did ask Chris about football and how the NFL has been supportive and all those things'
'He has twin boys who play football right now, so there are so many things that people don't know, I'm very proud and very happy that Chris trusted us to tell it'.
Johnson’s announcement hit hard. The 2009 NFL Offensive Player of the Year, who has four kids, said life is no longer the same as it was a year ago.
He was diagnosed with ALS at 39 last year and has already lost the ability to speak. During the interview, he used his eyes to activate a voice machine while sitting beside his wife Brittany.
The emotional segment left many viewers shaken as Johnson described his diagnosis and how it has affected his body. When asked why he chose to speak publicly now, he said: 'Because if sharing my story helps even one person get diagnosed sooner, inspires more research or gives another family hope, then it's worth it.'
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