This is for you, Katie Couric

[BobcatJH]

Dear Katie,

Some people just saw you interview John and Elizabeth Edwards on "60 Minutes". Others did not. Even those who did see you interview the Edwardses are of two minds about it. Some people who did see the interview thought it was a moving profile of two courageous individuals. Others who saw it thought that, while the last statement is true, you, on the other hand, did a terrible job and did journalism a disservice. Some people will surely come away thinking you legitimized the shameful opinions of the far-right fringe by couching them in relative anonymity. Other people will come away thinking you did that because you agree with them. So, some people will think you're simply a hack, while others will think you're a partisan joke. A third group will think both. What would you say to those people?

Annoying, isn't it, Katie?

I'm not sure exactly how many people still, for some unknown reason, consider you a journalist. I suppose you can't really blame them if they do, seeing as you are indeed the host of a nightly news broadcast. The same one, in fact, Walter Cronkite once hosted. You, Katie, are no Walter Cronkite. And on the same network, in fact, for whom Edward R. Murrow once worked. You, Katie, are no Edward R. Murrow. But those who saw your interview of the Edwardses Sunday night witnessed firsthand not only how much the field of journalism has suffered of late, but also how poorly amateurs like you have treated it. In other words, calling you a journalist is like calling President Bush a sophisticate.

You see, in your attempt to conduct an even-handed conversation with the Edwardses, you committed, on myriad occasions, lazy journalism. Your repeated use of the "some say" construction - a FOX News staple - was both especially annoying and professionally irresponsible. Some people didn't say John Edwards's decision to stay in the race despite last week's news was political opportunism. Rush Limbaugh did. Twice. So, too, did the always offensive fringe elements at the Free Republic. But by shielding the Limbaughs of the world from responsibility for their ridiculous statements, you made it appear as though they are shared by many others.

They are not. The overwhelming majority of Americans aren't that cynical. The overwhelming majority of Americans aren't hypocritical, immoral reprobates, nor are they pseudonymous, hate-filled cowards. They are intelligent, good-hearted people who, regardless of political affiliation, recognize character when they see it. Recognize heart when they see it. Recognize determination when they see it. Because, you see, the struggles now facing the Edwardses are the struggles far too many have faced. My family. Your family. Millions of families. And had someone baselessly accused you of being an opportunist despite the years of wonderful work you've done for the cause following the tragic death of your late husband, wouldn't you want to know who those heartless motherfuckers were?

The opportunity to respond directly to their critics was the very least you could have offered the Edwardses. That they rejected the premises of so many questions, answering them instead with dignity and aplomb, was as much a testament to their values as it was your lack of professionalism. The only difference Sunday between you and Ann Coulter was that Coulter didn't try to hide her rabid partisanship. In the name of playing devil's advocate, you were needlessly pessimistic, overtly challenging and bizarrely morbid. There's a difference, Katie, between asking tough questions and asking dishonest questions. It would behoove you to learn that difference. Good questions reveal more about the character of the interviewee than they do the agenda of the interviewer. It would behoove you to learn that, too.

Good night, Katie, and good luck.

[MadMaddie]

1. I love the last line..

<snip>
Good night, Katie, and good luck.
<snip>

Her ratings are a testement of her lack of journalism credibility. She is a hack and always has been.

[swimmernsecretsea]

13. Here, here.

Said by someone else, and with more vigor and weight it really means something.

[exlrrp]

53. I like: "Good luck and get fcked!!" better

Its what Mr and mrs Edwards shold have said instead of playing along with her vapid "journailism.".
That "Some say...." BS is the lamest trick in the book: it means "I'm saying it but I want to pretend I'm not" People being interviewed should slam that right back on them by demanding to know who's saying it.

[swimmernsecretsea]

60. "Some say..."

is indeed a one of the lamest ways of pretending to play "Devil's Advocate" and I've seen it done by her in such a clumsy way. I suppose she meant to ask "tough questions" but I just felt she looked as if she was going to the head cheerleader and saying "some say you slept with the quarterback." Come on, Katie. They paid you enough. Act like you earned it.

[Sequoia]

66. Heh, heh...Ah, Monday's!!!

[RevCheesehead]

2. Katie WHO?

'nuff said.

[Cobalt-60]

44. eloquent

[RevCheesehead]

56. Wasn't she a running joke on "Murphy Brown"?

[liberal N proud]

3. Katie Couric the worst move CBS ever made n/t

[Supersedeas]

64. I'll second that.

[babylonsister]

4. Most excellent! K & N! nt

[theoldman]

5. The Edwards should have told Katie to kiss their ass.

I think they were too kind to her. She tried to force them to say things they did not want to say.

[Jacklyn75]

6. K & R! n/t

[Jackpine Radical]

7. Wow. On the mark. Piercing like a rapier.

Thank you. I hope you will get this piece as much exposure as possible, online and in print. And send a copy to Katy, too, of course.

[BobcatJH]

8. Thanks

I appreciate it!

[Cha]

9. Wow! You did some heavy lifting

here, Bob..thank you for your analysis and letter to couric.

The interview started out all right and then couric went into harping mode.

I'm wondering, seriously, if these were bushboters who she was interviewing under similiar circumstances if she would have HARPED on the negative angle 1/2 as much?

[MODemocrat]

10. Katie is supposed to be a journalist?

She's just a right wing puppet. My husband wouldn't finish watching the interview because he didn't have the stomach to watch how Katie "belittled" the Edwards,just like putting salt on an open wound and she wore a smirk while doing it.

CBS, you made a grave mistake in hiring Katie the Klodhopper. She surely could stand some lessons from
Murrow and Cronkite. She'll never be anymore than what she was tonight and shame on her.

[splat]

11. She gave a platform to John and Elizabeth to respond to critics

I thought she looked tight, and drawn (and glaring, at the beginning), which is unfortunate for her. She doesn't look enthusiastic in her new roles.

But I also think she was trying not to do a Barbara Walters-style softball interview. And she was a foil for the Edwards' responses, letting them address responses that a lot of people besides Rush are having. Why make it about him at all?

She probably did herself no career favors with this one, but this was their moment and she let them have it.

No harm, no foul.

[Cha]

14. Except she went on and on and on, on, on, on...

I left with thinking couric was trying to bring them down. Not what you're suppose to be thinking of an interviewer.

[papau]

17. Katie let them hit it out of the park -destroying the problem - transcript link below

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/03/24/60minutes/mai...

[AshevilleGuy]

35. I was pissed at first at Couric, but you might be right, papau.

Whether she meant to or not, this got the "problem" out in the open, and the Edwards dealt with it with sincerity and graciousness. What more could people expect from them? This is who they are.

[Colobo]

42. I agree. I don't know what the problem is.

[Hun Joro]

12. Dead on.

I almost didn't watch tonight after hearing that Katie would be interviewing, and while watching I found myself wishing I hadn't. She's horrible.

[liberal renegade]

21. that's why she's at the bottom of the barrel

terrible decision to hire her, total waste of money....

[mvd]

15. Boy has she been disappointing

She is supposedly more liberal than Meredith Vieira, yet Meredith has a better record so far. Just goes to show that there is no liberal media when the corporations that own the media favor the Repukes. People like Olbermann who don't sell out are rare.

[Carolina]

74. Speaking of MV

I had stopped watching/listening to the TODAY Show while getting ready for work as long as Katie was there.

Meredith is truly a breath of fresh air and I can watch TODAY without spewing invective at the TV even though MSM (especially NBC and its iterations like MSGOP) is still vacuous and anything but liberal.

[TomInTib]

16. I am watching it right now and you are spot-on, BobcatJH.

The fucking whore is a waste of space.

I believe this is the first time I have ever seen her in action.

And I goddamn guarantee you it will be the last.

K&R

[ruggerson]

18. Very insightful post

I agree with pretty much everything you posited here. She's really the embodiment of the Peter Principle, isn't she? I don't see her as a partisan monster, I see her, as you wrote, as a truly bad journalist. She'd be more suited to doing bits on Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous and/or filling in for Mary Hart.

[MethuenProgressive]

19. The Righties think she's a Leftie - and DUers think she's a Rightie,

Pardon me while I let the We Hate Katie Band Wagon pass along without me joining you all...

[mvd]

20. Oh, I don't think she's a righty

It just seems that she does the same old things to Democrats sometimes that we've complained about. I haven't watched her enough to know if she does the similar stuff with Repukes.

[Forkboy]

23. I think she's just insipid.

[Digit]

24. I just think her questions were insensitive and ghoulish..which she repeated often

She just changed the wording a tad.
Dan Rather, for instance, would not have been harping on the doom and gloom factor.
I expect he would have asked the questions people would want to know without being so morbid.

[Cha]

34. Dan Rather would have

been interesting and I would have gone away informed instead of incensed.

[D23MIURG23]

80. Does anyone think she is a halfway decent journalist?

Because that is really a more pertinent question, and I think you'll find its hard to answer in the affirmtive.

[tavalon]

22. Bobcat

I love your writing but disagree with this one. I didn't see the interview but just read a transcript and it wasn't really that bad. Granted, on this potentially sensitive topic, she was very blunt but she's been through the death of a spouse at the hands of cancer and blunt comes with that - appropriately so. I reserve the right to change my mind after I see the actual interview because tone of voice can make such a difference but as I see it right now, I'm not bothered by this interview at all.

Katie Couric is certainly out of her league pretending to be a journalist of any ilk but she certainly isn't alone in that one!

[Henryman]

25. Bravo!

That's exactly how I felt. Curic was disgusting, and then I felt there are not two more gracious, intelligent and warm people than John and Elizabeth Edwards. Thanks for th3e great post.

[Straight Shooter]

26. Maybe she should change her name to Katie Curare.

You know, that incredibly toxic poison. I think it would suit her.

[femrap]

27. Bobcat....you are comparing

Katie to Coulter????

Un fucking believeable.

Go gnaw on Rush for awhile.

[Superman Returns]

28. seems no one likes Katie

when I went to the cbs website to read the transcript, the comments regarding the interview were all negative towards Couric with many people vowing never to watch 60 minutes again as long as she was on. I know Couric isn't that loved these days, but I couldn't believe how all the comments were negative.

[Name removed]

29. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Name removed]

32. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[bling bling]

30. I didn't see the interview.

But your letter summarizes just how pitiful our "journalists" are and how low the standards have fallen for our media over the last dozen years.

Just like everything else in this day-and-age, quality is being replaced by a cheap and ultimately worthless pieces of manufactured crap.

How sad. The once highly regarded media in this country has become analogous to the cheap plastic shit you can buy at the Dollar Store. It looks like the good stuff, but really it's just poorly made worthless garbage.

K & R for your fantastic letter.

[zulchzulu]

31. Compare Katie's cheesycat smiling interview with Condi to this interview

I find Couric pretty unwatchable, but withstood the interview to see how she would frame her questions. And of course, there was just so many pathetic side swipes at John and Elizabeth Edwards that it's hardly worth counting.

I do remember her soft focus softball interview with Condi Rice a while back...and it was equally pathetic in terms of being so predictably "sweet" and unquestioning of real issues and ended with her naming her favorite R&B tunes she loves to work out to. Or whatever...it was just bad.

I wanted John and Elizabeth Edwards to get up at one point, throw water at Kouris and walk off the set. Better yet, John should have asked why she didn't quit her job when her husband was dying of colon cancer...slap back...

[Cha]

36. Zactly! Why didn't she ask

condi over and over again.."what was thinking when she was the National Security Adviser on 9/11?" "How many more Soldiers are going to be killed in Iraq and how many more are going to be maimed for life. How many more Iraqis have to die before your decider calls a halt to the massacre? Or is it the oil, you, he, and dick are after?"

Not one tough question, eh? couric didn't mind throwing the hard ones to the Edwards who handled them with aplomb.

[greyghost]

33. Katie is six months...

out from hosting the CBS Morning Show.

[murielm99]

37. And your point is? nt

[Contrary1]

46. CBS Morning News comes on at 4:30 am here in Indiana...

I think that was the point.

[murielm99]

70. Thanks. That makes sense.

I thought Katie was trying to be incisive and hard-hitting, but she does not know how to pull that off. She is like a kitten trying to be fierce. It growls and scratches, but the kitten is too much of a piece of fluff to be a threat.

[greyghost]

75. Checked...

her ratings lately?

CBS will be kicking her arse to the curb around Sept.

She's not ready for primetime and never will be.

I hope that's clear enough.

[benny05]

38. Not to be like others

And not to hurt Katie C's family, but why o why she went on to try to make the Edwards feel bad about campaigning when:

(1) She never mentioned her continuation to work and saying that she wanted her and her late spouse to be normal when he had cancer

(2) VP Cheney was seldom questioned by the media about his heart disease. His heart disease, like Mrs. Edwards' illiness, was, and is treatable


Disappointed. Why couldn't it have been Scott Pelley or Leslie Stahl to do this interview?

[Booster]

39. Absofuckinglutely brilliant. Damn, I wish everybody could read

this.

[kaygore]

40. Katie is an ass. I don't watch CBS news any more. She is not credible.

[Duppers]

41. THIS is for you, Katie Couric.....

You did a great and eloquent job, Bobcat.

But the only thing I can do is express my emotion about the repig-asskissing Couric. How dare she call herself a journalist!

[ninkasi]

43. Your post about the Edwards' interview, BobJH

Showed John and Elizabeth Edwards to be two very courageous, very dignified, very caring people. You possess the same high class that they did. I caught the "some say" on more than one occasion, and agree, the "some" is limited to the Limbaughs, the Coulters, and knuckle-dragging freepers.

I hope that Elizabeth is with us for a long time to come, but believe that her utter faith in her husband, and her selflessness while confronting an incurable disease, is in itself a tribute to her husband's high ethical standards, and desire to serve his country. She is prepared to face her own death, by insuring that the ideals her husband shows can be shared with the country she loves.

Few of us, I think, would be able to show such courage in the face of such adversity. What a truly outstanding couple. K&R, for all of us to see.

[HCE SuiGeneris]

45. Brilliant. An absolute gem.

[Clarkie1]

47. Do you really think Cronkite or Murrow would have asked different questions?

Significantly different questions? I don't.

They were difficult questions, but they were to be expected. The Edwards answered them with exceptional grace and candor.

[NovaNardis]

48. Eh...

Aside from the occasional straw men I think she did OK.

Not great, but OK. She allowed the Edwardses to say their piece uninterrupted, so that is certainly something.
But, it would have been better if she just called out Limbaugh.

[Apollo11]

63. Couric kept the interview on-topic

She did not get into her own personal tragedies.

She did not give Rush Limbaugh extra oxygen.

She kept the focus on John and Elizabeth Edwards.

She gave them the opportunity to set the record straight.

Viewers expect tough questioning on 60 Minutes.

[Pachamama]

49. Best letter and response to what Katie Couric did....

Bravo....

Agree with you 100%....And to those who said that Katie Couric actually did the Edwardses a "favor"....hardly - if the Edwardses came out looking great after this sham of an interview, its not because Couric did any "favors", its because the Edwardses are a class act and that came through in the interview, even when having awful questions posed and a smirky Couric posing them.

[nicknameless]

50. Nothing but a bunch of long-winded, rethuglican accusations masquerading as questions.

And she had the nerve to accuse John of being "callous".

What a bitch.

[earth mom]

51. Excellent letter. Good Bye Katie!

[ms liberty]

52. I agree - The Edwards did a great job but Katie was abysmal...

I saw about the last half, and it seemed like she kept asking the same thing. When she pulled out the 'some say' I wanted to yell at the TV.

[noel711]

54. The interview in a nutshell:

Juxtapose katie's grimace: the bad face lift, and distancing scowl with the gentle, intelligent, open, trustworthy visage of Elizabeth Edwards.
Body language doesn't lie. Who will the public believe?

[shaniqua6392]

55. When the interview was over

my 14 year old daughter said, "She was kind of mean to them Mom". I had to agree. She lost her husband to cancer and she could have been a bit more compassionate with regards to how hard the road will be for them. She just had an undertone in her questioning that I did not like either. I think if they were Republicans, like Couric, she would have been a lot different. Just an opinion of course. But I loved your post and your excellent writing!

[BREMPRO]

57. Couryuk is a mediocre partisan fox in stylish sheep's clothing

I gave up on her after her fawning softball "interview" of Bush. She's been bought with big money and has no crediblity in my eyes. Using fox tactics doesn't surprise me one bit. Her ratings have fallen LOWER than Bob Shieffer and the worst of the major networks- and so they fire the producer! When they can no longer avoid the fact that SHE is the problem with the ratings because she is a terrible journalist with no crediblity, It's only a matter of time until they send her packing.

[IWantAChange]

58. K&R - BobcatJH, your critique couldn't have been more accurate - congrats!

maybe KT is angling for a spot in the awesome lineup of journalists at FAUX

[cyberpj]

59. Just asking... Did you SEND it? Or are you just posting it here? nt

[Apollo11]

61. Everyone is over-reacting

I did not see 60 minutes but I did read the transcript.

I cannot understand why people here are so worried about it. Katie Couric was doing her best to put the questions that she thinks viewers would want to ask. The Edwards had all the time they needed to answer in their own words. How can anyone ask more from a prime-time mass-market show on commercial media???

This was an interview about how the Edwards' are dealing with Elizabeth's health issues. John and Elizabeth had the opportunity to state their situation very clearly and explain why they are continuing with his (their) campaign. It was never going to be about poverty or healthcare or the war in Iraq.

Am I the only person around here who knows how the media works?

Am I the only person who remembers Bill and Hill on "60 Minutes" (January 26, 1992)? If DU had been online back then - everyone here would have been whining about why was Steve Kroft asking all these questions about the Clinton's marriage??

If the Edwards were unhappy about doing the interview they would not have done it. I am sure they are mature adults and they knew exactly what to expect.

[Faygo Kid]

79. Remember, she had Limbaugh on her first week at CBS News. Get rid of her.

Those who say that the interview was just the way journalism works? Uh-uh. It was just the way REALLY BAD journalism works. She was embarrassing to watch. Haven't seen anything that embarrassing since Fox News.

[Flying Dream Blues]

84. I think you need to see it. A lot is lost in the translation from video

to print. It was really awful...the poster above made a great point in comparing this interview to the sickening puff piece she did on Condi, who actually DOES work for us in a very "dangerous and complicated" (just like our world, Katie) position.

[Mad_Dem_X]

62. Excellent!

Couric is a disgrace to journalism. I wonder how she sleeps at night?

[LuckyLib]

65. Yes! She kept rephrasing the same hidden question: "Aren't you really a heartless Mom

for wanting to hit the campaign trail rather than pushing your kids in the swings out behind the house? Especially since you have no idea how long you'll live?"

The Edwards were more real in spite of Katie's faux journalism.

And BobCat, your following two statements summed it up perfectly: "That they rejected the premises of so many questions, answering them instead with dignity and aplomb, was as much a testament to their values as it was your lack of professionalism.

Good questions reveal more about the character of the interviewee than they do the agenda of the interviewer."

[Irishonly]

67. I wrote to 60 Minutes

I don't know how many of you found yourselves thinking the same thing. I honestly started counting the times she said "some people". Was she referring to Faux news viewers, Tim, herself, or the producers? I requested that she be sent back to school to learn how to interview.

I didn't pick up hostility from Katie. I thought she tried too hard and it was obvious she was outclassed by Senator and Mrs. Edwards. Not many people would answer questions so negatively worded with silly inferences with the grace and dignity they showed.

It was too important of an interview to allow Katie Couric to muck up.

[degreesofgray]

68. Agreed 100%

I watched that "interview" and thought exactly the same about Couric's lame "questions."

[Christa]

69. K & R

[Kajsa]

71. In spite of her many years in television,

Katie is an amateur who based most of her interview on
innuendos and hearsay.

There is more substance inside a helium filled balloon
than could be found in her questions.

It was painful to hear her callous questions.
Yet, the Edwards answered with grace and dignity.

Couric does not belong on '60 minutes'.

[benny05]

73. She doesn't belong as a journalist

She may as well get on E! TV or Entertainment Tonight. She puts all of the previous anchors to shame, and CBS should ditch her employment as soon as her contract is up.

[benny05]

72. Here's another good post Someone from here found here today

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/linda-milazzo/katie-couri...

Yes, Couric was acting like a gossip columnist instead of a true journalist.

[Cha]

83. Thanks! That was a stunning

review by Linda Milazzo.

[MasonJar]

76. In addition, CBS was the station of Dan Rather. He was the only one

of the so-called big 3 that was cognizant of the Bushista agenda of the other two. Any one else at "60 Minutes" would have done an excellent job; it is criminal that the show chose her.

[Nutmegger]

77. She was oh-my-god horrible.

I watched clips and almost screamed. WTF?

She's a joke. A sad, pathetic joke.

[D23MIURG23]

78. Blisteringly accurate.

Recommended with enthusiasm!

[ddeclue]

81. What If Caesar Rodney had "stayed home"?

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.ph...

[ooglymoogly]

82. Just heard this on Scarborough Country which I generally watch

after Kieth and there was a bit on Katy staying on at a previous anchor or post while her husband was languishing with cancer....some people are saying her interview with the Edwards was outrageously hypocritical...and some people are saying quell supreeeeze

[Flying Dream Blues]

85. Not only that, but she has more money than anyone could ever

spend, and yet she doesn't take a less demanding job to be with her "baby birds" more, knowing that they only have ONE parent now. Completely hypocritical; but JE got her when he said something to the effect of, "Katie, this isn't work, work was what I did as a lawyer. This is service" Touche'! And oh, Katie, I'm sure what you're doing is service, too. NOT!