Brian Williams
While it may seem like everyone is breathlessly watching the Royal Wedding with all its pomp and fanfare, elsewhere in the world real news is taking place.
Which is why NBC anchor Brian Williams chose to abandon his plan to cover Will and Kate’s wedding — just hours after touching down in London — and return to the U.S. to cover the devastation caused by tornadoes, floods and storms.
(More on TIME.com: See pictures of the destruction)
In a statement on msnbc.com, Williams wrote that he hadn’t been able to stop thinking of the climbing death toll in Alabama all through his flight to the U.K. And despite his enthusiasm for the wedding, he couldn’t in good conscience ignore the story at home.
His statement goes on to assure wedding fans that the event would still get plenty of play on NBC. “But for now, for us, for this story, one of us had to go back and lead a separate coverage team—as the death toll grows,” he said.
(More on TIME.com: Death toll is now at 297)
Which we can’t help but admire. Let’s face it, the Royal Wedding is going to be covered no matter what, but it’s nice to know that one of our favorite journalists is still willing to drop the pomp for the profound.