AGT viewers outraged by ‘shameful’ silence on television following the sudden death of a teenage contestant by suicide

Emily Gold, dancer at Los Osos High School and America's Got Talent contestant, had surprised the nation with her performance alongside her high school dance team. The Southern California teenager's crew not only made it through the auditions, but also rose up the rankings and secured a spot in the quarterfinals before being eliminated in August.

Despite the huge buzz Gold and her troupe made on the national stage, no one could have known what she was going through. On Friday, September 13, the 17-year-old dance student was found dead under an overpass in California, the San Bernardino Coroner's Office finally confirmed to PEOPLE. Until now, her death has apparently been ruled a suicide.

In an official statement, California Highway Patrol spokesman Rodrigo Jimenez said that “officers from the Rancho Cucamonga area of ​​the California Highway Patrol responded to a pedestrian who was stranded in the roadway.”

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“When officers arrived, they found a 17-year-old female who had been struck by at least one other vehicle in the carpool lane of 210 eastbound. The woman succumbed to her injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene.”

Shortly thereafter, people close to Gold's family organized a GoFundMe campaign, which stated: “It is with great sadness that we share the passing of our Los Osos Grizzly Emily Gold. Let us come together as a community and support the Gold family during this difficult time. Please be assured that this money will go directly to the family to support them and help with expenses.”

A message that is easy to miss and shared on social media

The AGT finale aired this Tuesday, just days after Gold's unfortunate and untimely death. However, the teenage contestant's memory was not honored properly and the subject was not even touched upon on television. Although a post dedicated to the young girl was published on the official AGT SNS pages, it could easily get lost in the long line of other eye-catching posts that overshadow the site's feed, especially when scrolling on a phone.

“The AGT family extends its deepest condolences to the family, friends and crew of Emily Gold. She was a bright young soul and will be greatly missed,” read the post, which was shared alongside a snapshot of the teenager in front of the America's Got Talent wall.

This is how some viewers reacted to the lack of mention of Emily Gold on television during the finale of America's Got Talent

Some viewers were very hurt by the indifference of the show's creators, with some of them expressing their disappointment on social media that the show did not mention Gold's death on television, despite their team's previous performance, which was rewarded with a standing ovation from Simon Cowell.

“Really no rest in peace for Emily Gold?”

“There was no need for a segment but also no need for a tribute picture like we see at the end of other shows when they've lost people? Their social media did take note but you guys run so many stories but as soon as a tragedy happens you go silent on TV? #AGT,” ranted one viewer on X, formerly Twitter.

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The tirade continued in follow-up tweets: “Sorry to rant about this but this show isn't afraid to talk about shit. Once a suicide happens, they stop talking about it?”

“You guys honored Nightbirde on the show when she died of cancer but can't you do the same for Emily Gold? #AGT I only knew about this because all my local stations were talking about it on their social media pages.

“The least this show could do is have a picture at the end like we've seen on other shows when someone dies. You're all sane until you don't like it anymore. #AGT”

A second fan of the show posted a recording of the final moments of the AGT finale, saying, “That was the end of @AGT @AGTAuditions and the show didn't even acknowledge Emily Gold. Shame on you @AGT @AGTAuditions.”

The user also commented: “Shame on them for not addressing this. She appeared on the show in August. They could have at least made her a memorial card.”