Tag: Barbara Walters
Joy Behar Leaves The View — Is Elisabeth Hasselbeck Jealous?
When two of your star players exit within months of one another, one can’t help but compare their goodbye parties. Joy Behar basically got a Presidential sendoff, while Elisabeth Hasselbeck got a simple, “see ya later.” I realize Behar has been there longer, but the sharp difference begs the question — did Hasselbeck have bad blood with the ladies? Watch a clip from Behar’s last day below.
Quote of the Day: Barbara Walters Calls Bruce Willis “Weird”
Elisabeth Hasselbeck Says Goodbye: New Room with a View
Despite the world of criticism she received for her polarizing public opinions, she sure stood firm, and for that — Elisabeth Hasselbeck deserves praise on her way out. It isn’t easy being the only Republican on a power-house panel, and she was certainly unafraid to speak her mind. Hasselbeck will be joining Fox & Friends in September. Watch her goodbye speech below.
Barbara Walters Retrospective — Retirement Official
Barbara Walters Retires — THE.END.OF.AN.ERA
This news hit me hard. Barbara Walters is my favorite interviewer in history, and getting an extra dose of her on The View has made for a consistent daily treat. In fact, when she’s not there, I quickly change the channel. I should have predicted the announcement, even though I was holding out hope that she’d pull a Mike Wallace and work for infinity. Her interview-style is um-matched asking short, poignant questions sans judgment, and getting more information than anyone else while doing it. She’s the queen. But this time around, there will be no one else to take her throne. Watch some of her most memorable interviews below.
Chris Cuomo Gets Criticized for Amanda Knox Interview — WATCH A CLIP
It is an interviewer’s job to get the information, not to re-try a case. And Chris Cuomo learned that lesson the hard way with his recent Amanda Knox interview on CNN. He acted as a cross-examiner, excitingly pushing the prosecution’s theories about Knox’s “deviant sexual activities” with an undertone of judgment. Not even Barbara Walters passed judgment during her interviews with some of the worst tyrants in history. Cuomo should take a note from her book. He got in the way of the interview, and as a result, the subsequent press is more about him than Knox. I’ve been a Cuomo fan for some time, so I’ll give him a pass — but let’s hope he learned a lesson.
Mariah Carey Releases ‘Beautiful’ Video Teaser — The Untouchable Diva Returns
I wish Mariah Carey would re-brand her image. Something tells me she’s difficult to convince, considering she’s been on the same path since her divorce, and yet she continues down the road despite the changing market. The untouchable diva angle is over, and if Jennifer Lopez can appear down-to-earth, so can Mariah Carey. What’s of particular confusion is Carey was exponentially relatable when her career began, often doing Barbara Walters sit-downs where she appeared as the girl-next door. I’m not sure what happened, but my advice is to take on a new team.
Watch the teaser for her ‘Beautiful’ video. It’s gold, there seems to be a wind machine, and there’s lots of jewelry.
Matt Lauer v. Ann Curry v. NBC — Analysis of a Stink Train
When one outlet advocates an opinion, the others run with it, and it’s soon too late to undo the damage. Such is the case with Matt Lauer’s Today Show downfall, and the constant assertions that he’s to blame for the ratings decline. So is he to blame? And will he recover?
While I’ve certainly taken my fair share of digs at Lauer for his aggressive interview style, the only people to blame for the ratings decline are Ann Curry and NBC. And before I get the backlash for bashing America’s sweetheart, allow me to explain. First, she never should have been promoted to that post in the first place. She was historically passed-over for that position for more appropriate hosts (see Meredith Vieria), and someone with a soft-spot felt it fair gift her with the role she’d been patiently eyeing. When she got it, it was immediately clear that she didn’t fit. She lacked the laid-back energy necessary for the show’s family-style morning atmosphere. Though she was perfect for hard news, the soft-stuff was an obvious struggle.
I don’t have inside sources at NBC, so I can’t confirm whether Lauer pointed out what was already clear to anyone watching — Curry didn’t fit, and she had to go. His nice-guy status began to tank when other news outlets did in fact blame him, and he was immediately painted as the bully who swiped the sweet-girl’s dream. My uneducated guess is that Curry and some inside-folks with an agenda leaked the stories. And Curry got public revenge when she openly weeped on the air, in what I can only describe as unprofessional. All I’ve ever left behind at a job is a thank you note and a smile, and while those jobs were not public, I certainly didn’t walk around the office complaining and crying about how I wish I could have “carried the ball.”
The subsequent fallout seems to be irreparable, and the only suggestion I’ve got is to commission Barbara Walters for a sit-down with Lauer and get the folks at NBC to give Ann Curry what she wants so she can stop leaking unflattering stories to the press about how NBC banned her from wishing cancer-stricken Robin Roberts well on twitter (Note: I don’t KNOW she leaked that, but again — it’s just an educated guess). Clean up your mess, guys. I’m sick of this garbage.
Barbara Walters Interviews One Direction — WATCH
I like the One Direction guys. They seem humble, and unlike Justin Bieber, I can actually understand why a tweenie might want to have sex with them (most notably, Harry Styles). Watch below for their interview with Barbara Walters.