Editor:

It starts each weekday morning with “Welcome to Good Morning America,” as the ABC television network moves into its daily national viewing schedule.

You’ll pardon me, I’m sure, if I prefer calling the two-hour program, at least for a brief period, “GMA- grossly misinforming America.”

Okay, so most the country will have no idea what this new slogan means, but, you better believe that most of Refugio County and ALL of Woodsboro will. (Also, that town in Pennsylvania that was ignored also, will have residents hurt, bewildered, and bothered.)

I write of the shabbiest of treatment given Woodsboro, and the PA town, for ABC dropping each like a hot potato three-fifths of the way through a wildly-touted, presumably five-day, promotion of which the two towns were integral parts.

Readers of the County Press and Victoria Advocate last week were briefed on the scheduled “profile” of Woodsboro and the other from PA. They were the final two towns hailed during the segment of “GMA” as “typical” of cities and towns in the U.S.A.

Woodsboro had been “nominated” by Richard and Rachel Sanchez. As the TV promotion was finalized Woodsboro was selected as one of the five to “visit.”

An excellent page-one story by our prize-winning editor, Kenda Nelson, in the County Press April 30 detailed an appearance by a TV crew, including reporter and cameraman, early April 24.

Rather extensive filming footage of the Sanchez home and the significant features of Woodsboro (as Sanchez drove them around town)...ostensibly to be used as one of the 7-9 a.m. programs, April 27-May 1 on “GMA.” (Another first-rate feature story was published by the Victoria Advocate April 30) and the expectation was that the glories of Woodsboro would be aired in one of the final days of the ”GMA Recognition”-- that day, last Thursday or Friday. Also, Channel 3 gave big coverage to the Woodsboro “GMA” segment planned.

Let’s face it, the promotion certainly worked in Woodsboro! A good guess would be that 99 percent of our town’s TV sets were tuned to “GMA” for the six hours prior to April 30; and tacked on two more hours viewing that day.

But in the silence out of New York’s “GMA” those two hours Thursday left Woodsboro in a state of complete complexity.

How could a national TV network produce a five-finalist promotion involving that many U.S. towns or cities; then show the taping highlights of only three?

You know now that after the three locales recognized, in WI, VA and MI, nothing, nada, zilch, zero out of “GMA” the fourth day. So what would the fifth day bring -- the PA town or Woodsboro, or maybe both?

We awaited Friday’s program with uneasiness, bewilderment, anxiety. Was our “place in the sun” eclipsed by an unfeeling, mean, ignoring, brutal, uncaring, national TV network?

Yep! ABC and it’s “GMA” was all of that and more...all negatively.

Woodsboro didn’t get on “GMA.” The taped footage was either stored or thrown away in New York City, probably. The country will never know of the Sanchezes and Woodsboro!

Now I realize this refusal of a network to follow through on its promise; and excuses will be made because of the pressures of other stories (swine flu, etc.) But, is there any excuse for promising national “exposures” of five “contest finalists ..and then showing and hailing only three?

If any excuse was sufficient, couldn’t the network at least, make the announcement that Woodsboro, and the PA town had to be sacrificed by emerging news events?

In truth, Woodsboro and its equally ignored PA pal was given the shaft in a most unkind sense.

I personally resent what they did (didn’t) do to my hometown. I think it great the Sanchezes went to such lengths to extol the virtues of Woodsboro; and I feel sorry for all else who helped promotion of our town.

ABC should have made some announcement, at least NAME the omitted two, why a five-day promotion became on three days.

Finally, I have to wonder how viewers daily of “GMA” thought about a promotion that failed to promote all that was promised them — profiles of FIVE American Communities, not three. (Admittedly, the above letter is written in bitterness and anger. I just don’t like untruthfulness, especially when it hurts my hometown of 60 years, this very month.)

(Epilogue: As of Monday, May 4, no apology or explanation had been received in Woodsboro from ABC.)