Gayle King responds to backlash over Blue Origin flight: “It’s not a marketing stunt”
Gayle King hits back at critics of her Blue Origin spaceflight, defending the mission as a noble effort and addressing claims it was a marketing stunt.
In a recent interview, Gayle King, the co-anchor of CBS Mornings, addressed the backlash following her participation in Blue Origin's first all-female spaceflight. King, along with pop star Katy Perry and Lauren Sánchez, embarked on the historic flight on April 14, 2025.
The mission, saw these six women journey to space aboard the New Shepard rocket. However, the celebration was short-lived as critiques emerged from the public.
Blue Origin's first all-female crew: trailblazers or a marketing stunt?
Despite the media campaign, the flight faced a lot of criticism both from the public and other celebrities, as many felt the flight was more about a spectacle than scientific discovery.
Katy Perry kissing the ground after returning from space in Blue Origin's mission. Photo: People
Olivia Wilde, Emily Ratajkowski and Olivia Munn are among the celebrities that criticized the Blue Origin's flight, with the latter calling it “gluttonous”, while Emily Ratajkowski took a more direct approach saying she was "disgusted".
Gayle King's bold defense of Blue Origin
Gayle King tried to defend the mission, saying that she too was skeptical about the benefits of such flights to space. However, her perspective changed after visiting Blue Origin and understanding their mission.
Despite mentioning the benefits of Blue Origin's mission, saying that the information they use in those travels can help with GPS and satellites, not everyone was in agreement with her, specially after she said this:
"And then my question is, 'Have y'all been to space?' Go to space or go to Blue Origin and see what they do and then come back and say, 'This is a terrible thing.'"
The outrage was because people felt the statement was out of touch as the first ever ticket to travel to space through Blue Origin was sold in $28 million in an auction and for now, the only civilians who have been to space are those who can afford it.