LAist is part of Southern California Public Radio (SCPR), a member-supported public media network. Hear our news on-air at our partner site:
This is an archival story that predates current editorial management.
This archival content was written, edited, and published prior to LAist's acquisition by its current owner, Southern California Public Radio ("SCPR"). Content, such as language choice and subject matter, in archival articles therefore may not align with SCPR's current editorial standards. To learn more about those standards and why we make this distinction, please click here.
While we've seen Barack Obama do things that we normally wouldn't see other U.S. presidents do—like hang out in comedian Marc Maron's garage for an interview session—getting the chance to see him use his survival skills in the wild with Bear Grylls is something we didn't see coming.
NBC and Electus, the producer behind the network's Running Wild with Bear Grylls, announced today that Obama will be taping an episode of the reality show while he's on his three-day trip to Alaska, making him the "first U.S. president to receive a crash course in survival techniques from Bear Grylls," according to Deadline. Other high-profile folks like Channing Tatum and Kate Winslet have joined Grylls in testing out their wilderness skills on his show.
Obama and Grylls will be bringing to light the effects of climate change in the area and explore the Alaskan wilderness in the episode, which is expected to air later this year. The President headed over to Alaska today, where he will also be visiting a fisherman in the coastal village of Dillingham, and hike on a melting glacier near Seward. This comes on the heels of his announcement that Mt. McKinley, the tallest mountain in North America, will be renamed to Mt. Denali, a nod to the history and culture of the mountain in the area. He will also meet with leaders of the Alaskan native community to figure out ways the Federal Government can strengthen their relationship with Alaskan Native tribes.