AFP Africa (May 3, 2005) - 5/7/05

NEWS 'Aisle be back' says runaway bride Posted Tue, 03 May 2005 When American bride-to-be Jennifer Wilbanks got cold feet, she didn't just jilt her prospective groom — she also left concerned TV viewers nursing feelings of betrayal. Wilbanks (32) went missing after going jogging in Duluth, Georgia, last week, thrusting her family and fiance John Mason into a media maelstrom. A weekend of runaway-bride television coverage offered a kind of emotional turmoil last seen in March with the death of Terri Schiavo, the brain-damaged Florida woman caught in a right-to-die drama. As life imitated Hollywood, comparisons were soon drawn with the 1999 film 'The Runaway Bride,' starring Julia Roberts and Richard Gere. Wilbanks finally surfaced in Albuquerque, New Mexico, after sparking a nationwide search when she hopped on a Greyhound bus to Las Vegas, spooked by fairytale nuptials featuring 600 guests and 14 bridesmaids. At first she told police she had been kidnapped — but she later admitted she had faked her abduction and cut her hair to disguise her identity. On Saturday, the day she was to have walked down the aisle, Wilbanks was instead marched by police through an airport, with a striped towel — rather than a veil — over her head. Soon, the tone of media turned from sympathy to vengeance towards the young woman, who in the words of one network reporter "sucked in a community and police." There goes the bride! By Monday morning, as Wilbanks eyed up to five years in jail, CNN's 'American Morning' asked its viewers to respond by email about "what should happen to Jennifer Wilbanks, the runaway bride." On MSNBC, 85 percent of the more than 1000 respondents to an online poll said Wilbanks should face charges. Media coverage of the affair is "amazing, crazy," said Rachel Safier, a runaway bride who had second thoughts and turned her agony into a book and a website for jilters and the jilted, www.theregoesthebride.com. Wilbanks probably fell prey to huge expectations and should not face police action, said Safier, who spoke to AFP by telephone from a limousine on the way to a television appearance. "The wedding industry is so crazy, I can only imagine what this woman is going through," she said, adding that talk of police action was "out of proportion. "This woman needs help," Safier said. Some couples joke about how marriage has handcuffed them, but for Wilbanks on Monday morning, the threat of arrest appeared real. "At some point, there has to be some consequence, but I just don't know what that is," Gwinnett County District Attorney Danny Porter told CNN. Possible charges include reporting a crime that did not take place, and Wilbanks could be called to account for a massive nationwide police search. Aisle be back? The fate of Wilbanks's dream wedding, meanwhile, was unclear after she reportedly issued a statement to reporters which said the wedding had just been postponed, not called off. Speculation mounted over Wilbanks's next move, with rumours flying over a possible appearance before the cameras, as bookers for top news shows no doubt descended like vultures. But will the real-life story have a traditional Hollywood happy ending? Stay tuned. AFP

Past press on 'There Goes the Bride' below.

• SW Michigan Living Magazine Feb/March 2006 - 3/4/07
• Psychology Today (February 26, 2007) - 2/26/07
• Associated Press (October 13, 2006) - 12/3/06
• Sirius Radio: The Cosmo Show (June 27, 2006) - 6/27/06
• Television: Fox Cable (May 19, 2006) - 6/8/06
• BBC Radio, UK (July 20, 2005) - 7/21/05
• Today Show (June 23, 3005) - 7/21/05
• IN Journal and Courier (May 24, 2005) - 5/25/05
• Yahoo! Picks (May 12, 2005) - 5/21/05
• Heraldo de Soria, Spain (May 3, 2005) - 5/21/05
• Montevideo Comm (May 5, 2005) - 5/21/05
• NC Charlotte Observer (May 4, 2005) - 5/21/05
• El Tiempo Colombia (May 5, 2004) - 5/21/05
• Arizona Daily Sun (May 8, 2005) - 5/21/05
• CO Rocky Mountain News (May 7, 2005) - 5/21/05
• NH Nashua Telegraph (May 10, 2005) - 5/21/05
• PA Lancaster Intelligencer Journal (May 3, 2005) - 5/21/05
• Dallas Morning News (May 3, 2005) - 5/21/05
• Orlando Sentinel (May 6, 2005) - 5/21/05
• AR Morning News (May 10, 2005) - 5/21/05
• Detroit News (May 6, 2005) - 5/21/05
• UT Standard Examiner (May 7, 2005) - 5/21/05
• Gannett News Service (May 7, 2005) - 5/21/05
• Tampa Bay Times (May 11, 2005) - 5/21/05
• San Diego Union Tribune (May 5, 2005) - 5/21/05
• FL Herald Tribune (May 9, 2005) - 5/21/05
• Corpus Christi Caller Times (May 10, 2005) - 5/21/05
• Contra Costa Times (May 11, 2005) - 5/21/05
• Radio: Houston (May 9, 2005) - 5/21/05
• Life & Style TV (May 16, 2005) - 5/20/05
• Kansas City Star (May 7, 2005) - 5/9/05
• Univision (May 6, 2005) - 5/9/05
• Philadelphia Inquirer (May 4, 2005) - 5/9/05
• South Florida Sun Sentinel (May 3, 2005) - 5/8/05
• Associated Press (May 3, 2005) - 5/8/05
• New York Newsday (May 3, 2005) - 5/8/05
• New York Times (May 8, 2005) - 5/7/05
• CNN (May 2, 2005) - 5/7/05
• MSNBC (May 1, 2005) - 5/7/05
• Inside Edition (May 1, 2005) - 5/7/05
• The Today Show (May 1, 2005) - 5/7/05
• Good Morning America (May 1, 2005) - 5/7/05
• MSNBC (April 30, 2005) - 5/7/05
• Christian Science Monitor (May 5, 2005) - 5/7/05
• Knoxville News Sentinel (May 2, 2005) - 5/7/05
• St. Petersburg Times (May 5, 2005) - 5/7/05
• Pittsburgh Post Gazette (May 3, 2005) - 5/7/05
• CNN (May 2, 2005) - 5/7/05
• USA Today (May 5, 2005) - 5/7/05
• CBS Early Show (May 2, 2005) - 5/7/05
• Public Radio Marketplace - 3/2/04
• Pensacola Journal (October 2, 2003) - 10/3/03
• TIME magazine (September 28,2003) - 9/30/03
• New York Times (Sept. 21, 2003) - 9/21/03
• Radio: Washington DC Area (Sept 20, 2002) - 9/20/03
• Ventura County Star (August 24, 2003) - 9/19/03
• Modesto Bee (August 24, 2003) - 9/16/03
• Radio: Canada (Sept. 16 2003) - 9/16/03
• Radio: New Jersey (Sept. 16, 2003) - 9/16/03
• Houston Chronicle (Sept 16, 2003) - 9/16/03
• Radio: New Hampshire (Sept. 15, 2003) - 9/15/03
• Radio: Pennsylvania (Sept. 10, 2003) - 9/13/03
• Arkansas Democratic Gazette (Sept 8, 2003) - 9/9/03
• The Hawk Eye, Illinois (August 31, 2003) - 9/6/03
• Anchorage Daily News (Sept 5, 2003) - 9/6/03
• Radio: Minnesota (Sept 4, 2003) - 9/6/03
• Radio: Ohio (Sept. 4 2003) - 9/4/03
• Elk Truth (August 23, 2003) - 8/27/03
• Kansas City Star (August 24, 2003) - 8/27/03
• The Charlotte Observer (August 24, 2003) - 8/27/03
• The Montana Standard (August 27, 2003) - 8/27/03
• Wichita Eagle (August 14, 2003) - 8/18/03
• Radio: Alabama - 8/14/03
• Augusta Chronicle (August, 2003) - 8/14/03
• Pittsburgh Post Gazette (August 7, 2003) - 8/7/03
• Radio: Canada - 8/4/03
• Radio: Minnesota - 8/4/03
• Television: Comcast Cable - 8/4/03
• Radio: Washington, DC - 8/4/03
• Metro Toronto (June 9, 2003) - 8/4/03
• The Montreal Gazette (June 17, 2003) - 8/4/03
• The Halifax Daily News (June 26, 2003) - 8/4/03
• The Calgary Herald (June 28, 2003) - 8/4/03
• The Victoria Times Colonist (July 8, 2003) - 8/4/03
• The St. Catherine's Standard (July 4, 2003) - 8/4/03
• The Barrie Examiner (June 21, 2003) - 8/4/03
• The Welland Tribune (June 24, 2003) - 8/4/03
• The Regina Leader Post (June 30, 2003) - 8/4/03
• The Windsor Star (July 12, 2003) - 8/4/03
• Daily Press (July, 2003) - 7/26/03
• Rocky Mountain News (July 26, 2003) - 7/26/03
• The Age (July 19, 2003) - 7/24/03
• Contra Costa Times (July 23, 2003) - 7/23/03
• Democrat and Chronicle (July 2003) - 7/23/03
• Schenectady Daily Gazette (July 2003) - 7/23/03
• St. Augustine Record (July 2003) - 7/23/03
• Arizona Central (July 20, 2003) - 7/23/03
• Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (July 19,2003) - 7/23/03
• New York Newsday (July 22, 2003) - 7/23/03
• Star Tribune (July 2003) - 7/23/03
• Greenwich Times (July 2003) - 7/23/03
• Providence Journal (July 20,2003) - 7/23/03
• Salt Lake Tribune (July, 2003) - 7/23/03
• The Daily Herald (July, 2003) - 7/23/03
• The Columbian (July, 2003) - 7/23/03
• Nashua Telegraph (July 20,2003) - 7/23/03
• Wilmington News (July, 2003) - 7/23/03
• Journal News of Westchester (July 11, 2003) - 7/23/03
• Sacramento Bee (July 11, 2003) - 7/23/03
• The Palm Beach Post (July 11, 2003) - 7/23/03
• The Miami Herald (July, 2003) - 7/23/03
• Washington Post (July 4, 2003) - 7/23/03
• Radio: North Dakota - 7/23/03
• Radio: California - 7/23/03
• Radio: Pennsylvania - 7/23/03
• Radio: Pennsylvania - 7/23/03
• Radio: National - 7/23/03
• Radio: North Carolina - 6/25/03
• Radio: Washington State - 6/25/03
• Radio: Washington, DC - 6/25/03
• Radio: California - 6/25/03
• Radio: Colorado - 6/25/03
• Radio: Maryland - 6/25/03
• Radio: Missouri - 6/25/03
• Radio: Texas - 6/25/03
• Radio: Oklahoma - 6/25/03
• Radio: Florida - 6/25/03
• Radio: Wisconsin - 6/25/03
• Radio: Massachusetts - 6/25/03
• Radio: South Carolina - 6/25/03
• Radio: Texas - 6/25/03
• Radio: National - 6/25/03
• Radio: Wisconsin - 6/25/03
• Radio: Illinois - 6/25/03
• Radio: Minnesota - 6/25/03
• Radio: Connecticut - 6/25/03
• Web: Indie Bride - 6/12/03
• Washingtonian Magazine (June, 2003) - 6/12/03
• Radio: California - 6/12/03
• Radio: Florida - 6/12/03
• Radio: Connecticut - 6/12/03
• Radio: Canada - 5/9/03
• Radio: Idaho - 5/9/03
• Radio: California - 5/9/03
• Globe and Mail (May 3, 2003) - 5/8/03
• Radio: Nebraska - 5/6/03
• Radio: The Joan Hamburg Show - 5/6/03
• Radio: Michigan - 5/6/03
• Television: Weekend Today in New York - 5/6/03
• Radio: California - 5/6/03
• Radio: New York - 5/6/03
• Radio: North Carolina - 5/6/03
• Radio: Australia - 5/6/03
• Radio: Kentucky - 5/6/03
• Radio: New York - 5/6/03
• Radio: North Carolina - 5/6/03
• Radio: Vermont - 5/6/03
• Radio: Ireland - 5/6/03
• Good Morning America - 5/6/03
• Winnipeg Free Press (May 5, 2003) - 5/6/03
• Washington Times (May 2, 2003) - 5/2/03
• New York Post (April 24, 2003) - 4/24/03
• Television: Fox 5, Washington, DC - 3/17/03
• National Post, Toronto Canada (March 5, 2003) - 3/6/03
• Television: Fox-5, Washington - 3/6/03