Anderson Cooper and Wolf Blitzer hosted a special edition of Countdown to Election Day on CNN Sunday night.
The latest CNN-ORC Poll released on Sunday have Present Obama and Gov. Mitt Romney in a tie at 49% each.
John King was working the maps and also joined in the anaylsis with Dana Bash, David Gergen, Van Jones, Alex Castellanos and Gloria Borger. Jessica Yellin was with the President in Ohio and 2 other States today.Jim Acosta reported from Pennsylvania while traveling with the Romney campaign.
Anderson checked in with Don Lemon in Ohio, Poppy Harlow in Iowa and Kyung Lah in Colorado. Tom Forman reported on the Senate campaign from CNN's 'virtual Senate'. Portions of POTUS speech in Ohio were shown live and sound bites from Romney's speeches today were shown also.
Tuesday night's coverage starts at 6PM ET. Here's the rundown for CNN's election coverage this week:
Monday, November 5
Early Start with John Bermanand Zoraida Sambolin and Starting Point with Soledad O’Brien air live from 5 a.m. to 7 a.m. and 7 a.m. to 9 a.m., respectively, from Washington.
The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer airs live from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.
Erin Burnett OutFront airs live from Columbus, Ohio, from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m.
Anderson Cooper 360° airs live from 8 p.m. to 9 p.m. and 10 p.m. to 11 p.m. from Washington.
Erin Burnett OutFront airs live from Columbus, Ohio, from 11 p.m. to midnight.
Piers Morgan Tonight airs live from 9 p.m. to 10 p.m. and midnight to 1 a.m. from New York.
Tuesday, November 6: ELECTION DAY
Early Start with John Bermanand Zoraida Sambolin and Starting Point with Soledad O’Brien air live from Washington from 5 a.m. to 7 a.m. and 7 a.m. to 9 a.m., respectively.
Election Day in America editions of CNN Newsroom will provide live coverage from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. with updates from CNN’s correspondents in the final battleground states.
A special one-hour Election Day in America edition of Erin Burnett OutFront airs live at 2 p.m. from Columbus, Ohio.
A special one-hour Election Day in America edition of Anderson Cooper 360° airs live at 3 p.m. from Washington.
A special Election Day in America edition of The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer airs live beginning at 4 p.m.
ELECTION NIGHT IN AMERICA full team coverage begins at 6 p.m. and continues through night and early morning to 3 a.m.
Wednesday, November 7
America’s Choice 2012 coverage will begin at 3 a.m. with Early Start anchors John Berman and Zoraida Sambolin and Starting Point anchor Soledad O’Brien. Sambolin will be live from Chicago, Berman and O’Brien are live from Washington.
At 9 a.m. America’s Choice 2012 continues with Kate Bolduan and Joe Johns from Washington.
At noon, post-election day editions of CNN Newsroom continue with anchors Wolf Blitzer, Suzanne Malveaux, John King and Brooke Baldwin from Washington and Atlanta.
Post-Election Day editions of The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer, Erin Burnett OutFront, Anderson Cooper 360°, and Piers Morgan Tonight will air live at their regularly scheduled times.
If you are a regular CNN viewer you will recognize, and probably get a chuckle out of Saturday Night Live's opening skit. It pokes some fun at CNN's iReports, Twitter, Jack Cafferty, Gloria Borger, Wolf Blitzer and Christiane Amanpour. Enjoy!
The Washington Post posted at article from the AP's David Bauder who talked to CNN's John King about having reported from all 50 states over the past year for State of the Union:
John King had no thoughts about trying to touch 'em all when he began traveling to different states for his CNN "State of the Union" show.
Part of the way in it became a goal, realized when King reported on the tourism industry from Jackson, Wyo., on Sunday's program. He traveled to all 50 states in one year, accomplished just as he's about to leave. King's Sunday gig will soon end, as he prepares to launch a new daily show in the time slot vacated by Lou Dobbs.
King believed he could better illustrate many of the issues faced by Washington leaders by leaving Washington.
"It's not just a gimmick to say we went to all 50 states," he said. "It's worth doing because we learned so much. My body is a little beat up, but I wouldn't trade this for the world."
...
It wasn't hard to find stories illustrating the nation's economic woes, but different states were affected in different ways, he said.
"If that doesn't inform your thinking or the questions you ask, then it's time to do something else," King said. "I was privileged and a little numb by what I learned and what I saw. I just hope it makes you a better reporter. I hope it makes you understand. The defining challenge in our business, at a time when people have so many choices, is to be relevant."
The article also mentions that CNN's Candy Crowley and Gloria Borger, who both recently anchored State of the Union in King's absence, may be in the running to take over for King when he starts his new primetime program. In case you didn't get to see them anchoring, below are video clips from an interview that each of them did.
Candy Crowley anchored the December 27, 2009 State of the Union. She interviewed Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano.
A few quick highlights from this morning's State of the Union with John King. Today's program focused on health reform, the war in Afghanistan, and the economy.
King interviewed White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel and Senator John Kerry.
During the first part of the Sounds of Sunday, we heard from Bill Bennett, Donna Brazile, and David Gergen.
The conversation continued with the addition of Jessican Yellin and Gloria Borger.
The Last Word went to Hew Hampshire's Republican Senator Judd Gregg.
King visited his 40th state this week: Alaska. He took a look at the impact the recession has had in this week's American Dispatch as well as spoke with Zina Egbert, David Newlon, and Dan King in Wasilla, Alaska for the CNN Diner segment.
National Security Advisor General James Jones (Retired) was John King's first guest this morning on State of the Union. King asked Gen. Jones about war in Afghanistan: new strategy and troop levels. Many of King's questions focuses on Gen. McChrystal's actions and public comments. In response to Sen. McCain's criticism that he is playing politics with decisions regarding Afghanistan and the troops, Jones responded that McCain knows that he doesn't play politics (period). Neither he nor the President is playing to any sort of base with decisions regarding the troops.
In the second segment of the interview, they discussed Iran and the new nuclear facility that Iran has built. The General stated that they are still working towards meeting the January 2010 deadline of closing Guantanamo Bay. When asked about the "don't ask; don't tell" policy, the General said that the President has a lot on his "desk" right now, but he intends to do something about this "when the time is right." What keeps Gen. Jones up at night? Weapons proliferation.
Next on the program were Senator Barbara Boxer (D) and Senator Jon Kyl (R). King asked the Senators about General Jones comments; the troops in Afghanistan; and the New York Times article stating that Iran has the ability to make a bomb.
The second part of the interview with the Senators turned to the ethics investigations of Senator John Ensign (R) (an affair, a possible cover up, and possible improper lobbying). Neither Senator would comment on the investigation. They then turned to the economy and job creation. Senator Boxer defended the climate bill that is currently being looked at in the Senate. King asked for a yes/no answer on the Senate health care bill and (surprise) didn't get it from Sen. Boxer (he did get a much longer answer). Sen. Kyl isn't happy that the Republican amendments to the bill have not been included.
In the American Dispatch, King went to North Dakota: the place that has the lowest unemployment rate at just 4.3% (compared to 15.2% in Michigan). King visited a Bobcat plant which is still in business, but has not been immune to the economic turn down.
A taped Reliable Sources with Howard Kurtz this morning. Kurtz started the hour with a discussion about David Letterman's blackmail and sex scandal. The panel included Lisa Bloom, Amy Argetsinger, and Ben Mankiewicz.
Continuing the sex scandal theme, the next topic: the capture of Roman Polanski and the celebrity outcry over it.
The next panel included: Byron Pitts, Amanda Carpenter, and Joan Walsh. They discussed Obama's trip to back the US bid for the Olympic games and the harsh criticism that the President received when the US didn't win. The discussion then moved to the extreme language being used against politicians (the President) and made by politicians.
Kurtz then spoke with (Baltimore native) Byron Pitts about his book Step Out On Nothing: How Faith & Family Helped Me Conquer Life's Challengees. Pitts was illiterate at age 12 and stuttered until he was in college.
John King was back at the top of the hour for the Sound of Sunday.
The hour started off with James Carville and Mary Matalin. (I believe that in the above screen cap, Carville is laughing at King's tag line: we've been watching all the other Sunday shows, so maybe you don't have to.) King asked them about Gen. Jones' response to Gen. McCrystal's comments, McCain's comments about Gen. Jones playing politics, and who will the President listen to.
In the second part of the panel discussion, they covered the ethics investigation of Senator Ensign, other ethical issues facing both parties and the health reform bill.
King then mentioned that he moderated a panel at the First Draft of History event that was held at the Newseum in Washington on October 2, 2009. Steve Schmidt and Bob Shrum were the panelists and King asked Schmidt about Gov. Palin's book. Schmidt, who was McCain's campaign manager, did not have favorable views of the former Governor. Clips from the panel are available at the Atlantic's website.
King asked Carville and Matalin to respond to Schmidt's comments. To wrap up the discussion, King asked them about comments Senator Graham made on Fox News this morning about Glenn Beck not representing the Republican party. Carville's opinion of Beck: He wouldn't know the difference between a football, a bat and a hockey court. This guy is not -- he's just all -- he's just all weeping. (Source: CNN Transcript, State of the Union with John King October 4, 2009)
And my completely frivolous comment for the week: I loved Carville's shoes.
The CNN Diner segment this week came from TNT's Diner in West Fargo, North Dakota. King spoke with Craig Olsen, Jamie Higensen, John Stratman about health care reform legislation, why is the unemployment rate so low in North Dakota, and the troop levels in Afghanistan.
The hour continued with Ed Henry, Gloria Borger, and Joe Johns joining King in the studio.
They discussed the comments that Gen. Jones made about Gen. McCrystal's comments about the troop levels in Afghanistan as well as would leaving the Taliban in Afghanistan leave the US vulnerable to future al Qaeda attacks.
The second segment focused on domestic issues: unemployment/ economy and Gen. Jones' "punt" when asked about changing the "don't ask; don't tell" policy. King saved the topic of the President and the Olympics for the Lightening Round where Ed Henry summed it up by referring to it as the "Audacity of Nope."
The Last Word went to Michigan's Governor Jennifer Granholm (D). The Governor's state has the highest unemployment rate in the country. What can the federal government do to help with job creation? Auto suppliers in her state are having a hard time finding capital in order to diversify their production lines into parts that support the solar and wind industry. Fuel efficient vehicles are going to be more expensive and the Governor is looking for federal government incentives. And of course, King couldn't help asking her about the playoff spot still in the question for the Detroit Tigers. The Governor expects to see the Tigers playing the Yankees for the division playoffs. Boston native, King took a bit offense that answer.
The Behind The Scenes preview of State of the Union returned this week. Taped at TNT's Diner in West Fargo, North Dakota, King talked about the upcoming program.
Last night, John Roberts (sitting in for Campbell Brown) hosted a conversation with Michael Ware and Gloria Borger about the future of the US's commitment to the war in Afghanistan. As President Obama gets new advice from his generals on the ground, will politics or reality be the deciding factor?
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Earlier in the day, Wolf Blitzer interviewed Thomas Ricks about the new team leading the American effort in Iraq. Things not sounding great there...
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And Mohammed Jamjoom filed a report about medical clinics in Baghdad that are being run on solar power as a way to deal with the still-spotty supply of electricity in the city:
State of the Union with John King started off on Sunday morning at the magic map with John King comparing satellite images of the area in Iran where a secret nuclear facility has been constructed.
King's first interview (pre-recorded) was with Secretary of Defense Robert Gates. King asked Gates about the nuclear facility in Iran, about military options concerning Iran, the impact this new facility has on Israel, and whether additional sanctions would make a difference.
The second segment with the Gates focused on potential increased troop levels in Afghanistan, the unresolved election in Afghanistan. Gates had some harsh criticism for the prior administration's handling of the war:
KING: General McChrystal, in an interview that will air on "60 Minutes" tonight, talks about the breadth and the geographic spread of the violence in Afghanistan. He says, "It's a little more than I would have gathered."
We've been at this nearly eight years. Why are we still surprised?
GATES: Well, I will tell you, I think that the strategy that the president put forward in late March is the first real strategy we have had for Afghanistan since the early 1980s. And that strategy was more about the Soviet Union than it was about Afghanistan.
KING: You served in the Bush administration. That's a pretty broad damnation of the Bush strategy.
GATES: Well, the reality is, we were fighting a holding action. We were very deeply engaged in Iraq. I increased -- I extended the 10th Mountain Division the first month I was on this job in January of '07. I extended -- I put another brigade into Afghanistan in the spring of 2007. And that's all we had to put in there. Every -- we were -- we were too stretched to do more. And I think we did not have the kind of comprehensive strategy that we have now.
KING: And if it comes to the point of sending more, this time, if the president agrees and General McChrystal gets -- maybe it's 20,000, 30,000, or 40,000, do we have the troops now? If you needed 40,000, could you find it?
GATES: Well, I think, if the president were to decide to approve additional combat forces, they really probably could not begin to flow until some time in January.
Next on the program was a live interview with Senator Evan Bayh (D) and Senator Bob Corker (R). King began by asking Sen. Bayh about whether the US should go into the 6 party talks with Iran using "carrots" or "sticks". King asked whether the sanctions should be imposed now or in January; the Chinese are going to be key to making any additional sanctions work. King questioned how an intelligence report (available to the public) that was released during the Bush administration states that Iran wasn't pursuing their nuclear program and yet this new facility is clearly setup for use with a weapons program.
Next, the Senators were asked about troop levels in Afghanistan and health care reform.
In this week's American Dispatch, King visited Jefferson County, Mississippi to report on unemployment in this community that is 90% African American and has the highest unemployment rate in the state.
Howard Kurtz was on at 10AM with Reliable Sources.
Kurtz's first panel included Ed Henry, Margaret Carlson, Jim Geraghty, and Lauren Ashburn. The panel discussed President Obama's relationship with the press. Henry spent a good portion of the discussion defending CNN in comparison to other cable news networks.
The second segment with the panel discussed Bob Woodward's article in the Washington Post about the plans in Afghanistan and an article the New York Times ran about the Obama asking NY's Governor Patterson not to run for re-election.
The program continued with Kurtz's pre-recorded interview with Joy Behar. Behar's new program, The Joy Behar Show, premieres at 9PM Tuesday night on CNN's sister network HLN.
Kurtz interviewed Christopher Andersen, the author of a new book about the Obamas entitled: Barack and Michelle: Portrait of an American Marriage. Andersen took issue with Kurtz's characterization of the book as "dirt digging". Kurtz took issue with Andersen "quoting" conversations that the Obama's had based on information from third parties.
The Sounds of Sunday hour started off with John King talking to James Carville and Mary Matalin in the DC studio. They discussed the war in Afghanistan and Iran's nuclear program. The second segment included the closing of Gitmo and President Clinton's comments about the GOP and the "vast right wing conspiracy".
The CNN Diner segment this week was from Jackson, Mississippi at the Coffee Roastery with Dr. David Cole, Nikdra Ford (owner of the Coffee Roastery), and Ted Duckworth. King asked them about Obama's performance so far, the economy and health care reform.
Barbara Starr, Gloria Borger, and Dana Bash joined King in the studio. King started the segment at the Magic Wall reviewing the satellite images of the Iranian nuclear site. The first part of the discussion centered around the policies surrounding the revelation that Iran has concealed this latest nuclear facility.
The second segment with the group included discussing the war in Afghanistan and President Clinton's change of opinion on gay marriage.
The Last Word went to Merrilee Carlson, a gold star mother and the President of Families United. Her son, Army Sergeant Michael Carlson died serving his country in Iraq. Her organization supports the troops.
One bonus clip tonight... while John King was in Portland, Maine earlier this month, he was interviewed on WCSH6's 207
John King was in Maine this week when he taped the preview for this week's State of the Union.
On this morning's program, we got see updated music and graphics for the program. The first guest was Press Secretary Robert Gibbs to discuss the tea party protests in DC, health care, and Representative Wilson's outburst during the President's speech. Gibbs was also asked about the House Democrats who have taken money from health care PACs and whether or not the attacks on the President's policies are because of his race.
Next, Senator Susan Collins (R), Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D), Senator Dianne Feinstein (D) talked with King about health care reform and the war in Afghanistan.
The American Dispatch was from Maine. King took a look at the impact of the large number of independent voters in the state. (And demonstrated this with lobsters- watch the video for details of his lobster bucket math.)
Reliable Sources with Howard Kurtz started at 10AM. His first panel included Sam Tanenhaus, David Brody, and Ceci Connolly and they discussed political pundits and the coverage of Obama's health care plan as well as the President's speech to students.
Next was Ana Marie Cox and Chris Stirewalt to discuss the Beck vs Olbermann battle and the Van Jones controversy
Gail Shister and James Poniewozik discussed CNN's coverage of the Coast Guard's exercise on the Potomac and Jay Leno's debut at 10PM.
The 11 AM Sounds of Sunday started off with a discussion with Ed Gillespie & Donna Brazile. King asked them about Rep. Wilson's "you lie!" outburst, the protests in Washington, the health care public option, and the public's concern about the cost of health care reform.
This week's CNN Diner segment was from Portland, Maine. King talked with Judy Colby George, Bob Gregoire, & David Unger about health care reform and their thoughts on 9/11 – eight years later.
The next panel included Ed Henry, Gloria Borger, and Dana Bash. They covered the health care reform legislation, swine flu vaccinations, Rep. Wilson's outburst, and the war in Afghanistan.
The Last Word went to Rep. Eric Cantor (R). King asked Cantor about health care reform, troops in Afghanistan, Rep Wilson's outburst, and whether Rep. Cantor was disrespectful during the President's speech by working on his blackberry.
John King was back in DC this morning for State of the Union. The first guests on the program were Senator Orrin Hatch (R) and Senator Christopher Dodd (D). They shared their reflections on friend and Senate colleague Senator Edward M. Kennedy. They also discussed the health care legislation that is trying to work its way through Congress.
After the commercial break, Senator Maria Cantwell replaced Senator Dodd on the panel. The discussion about Senator Kennedy and health care reform continued.
King spoke with Justice Stephen Breyer at Kennedy's Memorial service in Boston.
While in Boston this week, King also spoke with Thomas P. O'Neill III (son of the former Speaker of the House, Tip O'Neill).
In the American Dispatch, King spoke with Larry Lucchino, Pres & CEO of the Boston Red Sox about Senator Kennedy's love of the baseball team. King even got to take batting practice while he was at Fenway.
Reliable Sources started at 10AM with Howard Kurtz. The first segment was on the coverage of Senator Kennedy's passing and whether the press' coverage was fair. Joe Klein, Emily Rooney, David Broder, and Tom Oliphant talked about their experiences both personal and covering the Senator.
Kurtz interviewed NPR's Kurt Andersen about his new book, Reset: How This Crisis Can Restore Our Values and Renew America, that looks at the media's coverage of the economy, state of journalism, and the American culture. Random House has an excerpt of the book on their website.
Next, Kurtz interviewed Steve Brill about online news sites charging for their content. Brill's latest business venture is to allow multiple news sources to offer the pay for access content through a common user account.
During the handoff between Kurtz and King, King congratulated Kurtz on the birth of his daughter.
The 11AM hour: bring on the pundits and the Sounds of Sunday.
James Carville and Mary Matalin joined King in the DC studio. They talked about the investigation of CIA interrogation tactics, the possibility of Vicki Kennedy filling her late husband's Senate seat on an interim basis, and New Orleans four years after Katrina.
Earlier this week, King was in Oklahoma City and stopped in to Earl's Rib Palace to tape the CNN Diner segment. He spoke with Tony Miller, Chris Kennedy, and Wendi Determann.
The next panel discussion included Gloria Borger, Dana Bash, and Dan Lothian (from Martha's Vineyard). The topics included the Attorney General's investigation of the CIA, health care debate, and Senator Kennedy's funeral.
The noon hour brought the repeat of the first hour of the program. 32 minutes into the hour, King showed an touching interview with Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.
The Last Word this week went to Senator Mary Landrieu (D). King asked her about whether she could support health care legislation that contained a public option. King also asked her about the state of Louisiana four years after Katrina.
David Zurawik who writes for the Baltimore Sun and is a frequent guest on Reliable Sources has a column about the coverage of Senator Kennedy's funeral mass praising John King's reporting.
Another interesting article that mentions CNN was by Politico's Michael Calderone. He talks about the news media's practice of keeping a collection of preprepared obituaries on hand for well known individuals. A few years ago, CNN was caught testing a few of these on their website. The full article is available on Politico: NYT has 1,200 obits ready.
And one last item... I came across a profile of Howard Kurtz by Garrett M. Graff. The article is titled Fast Howie.
In an age when just about anyone can be a media critic, one fish is still the biggest in the pond. It’s why Howard Kurtz got a voice mail on May 26, 2003, saying, “This is Rick Bragg. I’m ready to talk.”
Bragg, a Pulitzer Prize–winning New York Times writer, had been watching his star career unravel amid charges that he’d violated the Times reporting standards. Now he’d been suspended for two weeks. He’d called around and asked one media heavyweight after another: “Who should I talk to?” The answer: Howie Kurtz.
The message came just as Kurtz and his new bride—his second—were flying home from California the day after their wedding. He’d already spent a day before the wedding on a pay-by-the-hour computer at Kinko’s writing not one but two articles while his soon-to-be-wife finished last-minute preparations. Then he reported on the Jayson Blair scandal from the wedding reception. Bride Sheri Annis might have been the new love of Kurtz’s life, but he’d been wed to reporting for much longer.
Hopefully, I'm going to be able to make it through this post without any of the technical issues that have plagued me this month. Sunday morning's State of the Union with John King started off with an interview with the Commander of the Multi-National forces in Iraq, General Ray Odierno from Camp Victory in Baghdad. The US has to remove troops from the cities in Iraq by Tuesday. They discussed the state of Iraq as well as the influence of Iran within Iraq. King also asked the General about the haircut he gave Stephen Colbert.
Between interviews, King took a few moments to look at some of the political ads that have started to air: both liberal ads attacking a Democrat not supporting the President's health care plan (which includes a clip from State of the Union) and the latest Republican and conservative ads. Personally, I'm not ready for the airwaves to become saturated with 2010 ads.
Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty (R) joined King in the DC studio. The main topic was health care reform: future of Medicare, a public option, and paying for healthcare. They also discussed the energy cap & trade bill that passed the House this week, the stimulus money Minnesota's received, the Senate race that still has not been resolved in the Governor's state, the damage to the GOP brand (as a result of philandering of several Republican politicians & campaign promises that aren't realized), the Republican's stand on same sex marriage, and is it "derelict of duty" when a Governor doesn't tell his staff how to contact him when he's out of the state.
Howard Kurtz's Reliable Sources started with a look at the latest political scandal (South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford (R) ). Dana Milbank, Amanda Carpenter, and Nico Pitney joined Kurtz to discuss the scandal, and the publication of some of the Governor's emails to his mistress.
Pitney was the topic of discussion as result of a question he asked at a recent Obama press conference. Here's an excerpt from a report from Carol Costello:
Fair criticism or not, some say the President is fueling the fire by playing favorites. Before holding a press conference Tuesday, the White House gave Nico Pitney from The Huffington Post a heads-up the President was going to “call on him.”
President Obama: “Nico, I know that you, and all across the Internet, we’ve been seeing a lot of reports coming directly out of Iran. Do you have a question?”
In short – that’s unusual. And it didn’t sit well with some journalists.
Dana Milbank, who writes the sketch column for the Washington Post says, “Either a news conference with the President is an unscripted event or it isn’t. The question is when people tune into see the President in a news conference do they have any confidence that they’re in fact watching a news conference or is this some sort of a pre-produced television program?”
Nico Pitney, the national editor for the Huffington Post claims the question wasn’t scripted. Pitney IS well known for blogging tirelessly with protestors inside Iran. He says the White House knows that and called to inform him the President would call on him. Critics, he adds, are just miffed because the scripting of the press conference didn’t go according to tradition.
“President Obama, for whatever reason chose to do a different order, but everyone recognizes that the White House gets to decide how these press conferences go,” Pitney says.
A heated discussion ensued between Milbank and Pitney over the circumstances that Pitney got to ask his question. All agreed that it was a valid question, but Milbank and Carpenter didn't like the appearance of the White House having influence of the press. Then the panel turned to ABC's White House health care coverage. You can read more about this on the CNN Political Ticker.
And of course, the discussion turned towards the media's coverage of Michael Jackson's death. The panel, Carlos Diaz, Eric Deggans, and Diane Dimond, took a look at the less than favorable coverage the pop star had received, is this story going to drag on like the Anna Nicole Smith story did, and although TMZ was the first to report the Michael Jackson's death, it wasn't credited with it.
A few quotes from the discussion:
DIMOND: I got a call from "Maclean's" magazine, the Canadian magazine, that said help, quick, can we excerpt parts of your book? Because we're going to do our whole issue -- we've thrown it out and we're going to do the whole issue on Michael Jackson.
So it depends on, what media are you talking about? I'm sorry, I'm a longtime trained journalist, worked right there in Washington, D.C., at the White House and Capitol Hill. And when the evening newscast is 99 percent Michael Jackson, now, I have trouble with that.
Their reason for being is to tell me what's happening in the world, all over the world, capsulize it for me, not just give me one story. So there I have a problem.
…
KURTZ: …Diane mentioned the network newscasts, which led Thursday night, Friday night, of course, with Michael Jackson. Back in 1977, CBS led with another story, the Panama Canal instead of Elvis' death. And it just seems like everybody is on this Jackson bandwagon.
DIAZ: It's because people are talking about it. I mean, you know...
KURTZ: Is that the standard? Is that the media standard, whatever people talk about becomes the most important story?
DIAZ: Yes. It is now.
I mean, I'm not a 40-year veteran of TV journalism, but I can tell you that you cater to what everyone is talking about. That seems to be the new standard. And everyone on Thursday, everyone was talking about Michael Jackson's death. Farrah Fawcett died five hours earlier, and it's as if she never even existed. So that's the thing.
Just before this segment, John King provided a news update and as he handed it back off to Kurtz, they briefly discussed how the war in Iraq takes a back seat to other stories.
KURTZ: Hey, John.
You know, you led off this morning with General Odierno talking about the U.S. pullout from major Iraqi cities, which is supposed to be completed by Tuesday. And as you know, a series of bombings this week left more than 200 dead, and yet the coverage this week on cable and, to some extent, on the broadcast networks, Michael Jackson, Farrah Fawcett, Mark Sanford.
Are our priorities a little screwed up?
KING: Well, well of those things you just mentioned are legitimate news stories, but sometimes Iraq has become, I believe, the forgotten war. And we won't forget it here for obvious reasons. There are still, as the general said, 131,000 U.S. troops in Iraq, some key deadlines coming up. The question is, will they be home on time? So it does get overshadowed, I would argue, too much. It's a very important story, and we'll keep covering it.
KURTZ: I would agree with you, overshadowed too much. Thanks very much, John.
How much information are stockholder entitled to on the health issues of a head of a company? Kara Swisher and Steven Levy discussed Apple's Steve Jobs secrecy over his health and recent liver transplant. Apple's stock has done well even though Jobs had taken six month leave of absence, but should they have been more upfront over the condition of Jobs? Swisher had an interesting parting comment on topic:
SWISHER: Here's the thing. Apple did very well while he was away.
I mean, I think the problem is we put him up as this iconic figure, and then Apple did just fine when he was away. They did even better. The stock is doing even better.
I mean, the idea that there's not a company behind this man, I always say he's not Willy Wonka and the Apple execs aren't Oompa Loompas. I mean, these are very talented executives
KURTZ: Right. Well, you know, we in the media tend to personalize these...
Kurtz also took a look at sidekicks and the passing of Ed McMahon. And as Kurtz turned the program back over to King he reminded us that the news buzz earlier in the week was about a reality TV show (Jon & Kate…) but quickly swept through several stories including events in Iran, the deaths of McMahon, Fawcett, Jackson, the DC Metro train accident, and Governor Sanford's scandal.
James Carville and Mary Matalin joined King in Washington, D.C. this morning. The first conversation was about the health care legislation.
This led into a discussion on what adjustments the parties will have to make in order to succeed in the 2010 election and the fall out from the Governor Mark Sanford scandal. Its fun to watch Matalin's face while Carville is speaking, it's not uncommon to see her rolling her eyes.
King went to West Virginia for the CNN Diner segment this week. He was in Fosterville where coal mining is key to the local economy.
This week's political panel included Dan Balz, Gloria Borger and Dana Bash. The focused on the health care legislation including the possibility that in order to pay for it they will have to tax health care benefits, the climate bill that passed in House, Governor Sanford, and whether the Republican party can take advantage of Democrat "failures" to win elections in 2010 & 2012.
King referred to them as the "original hybrid" as an introduction to a report about Mule Day from Columbia, Tennessee.
The noon hour started off with a 40 minute repeat of the 9AM hour. While waiting for live programming to return, it’s a good time to take a look at the weekly staff briefing that was once again back in Washington. (If you want the TV screen in the background, you can see that this was taped during Wednesday's Situation Room.
King spoke with Karl Penhaul about the Honduras military coup. The President of Honduras, Jose Manuel Zelaya, has been taken to Costa Rica where he spoke to CNN.
The Last Word this week went to T. Boone Pickens to discuss the House climate legislation. Pickens made the argument that the legislation is only the first step. The US imports 68% of their oil from foreign countries. He wants to see the US move to natural gas and made frequent references to House bill 1835. King ran out of time and had to cut the discussion abruptly short in order for GPS on time at 1PM.
Here's this week's video clip of the "Sounds of Sunday":
Here are the links to this week's podcasts of the program:
Earlier this month, King was in Cleveland and was the keynote speaker at a CJN Foundation event. The Cleveland Jewish News had a write up about the appearance:
Photo Credit: Marc Golub/ Cleveland Jewish News
He came, he spoke, he conquered.
CNN chief national correspondent John King may not be Caesar, but as keynote speaker at last week’s CJN Foundation tribute event, he had more than 600 people in attendance at his feet. Funny and informative, the Roman Catholic-raised convert to Judaism wowed the crowd with stories about his spiritual path and insights on politics, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the media business.
King also noted his support for the Foundation’s project to create a searchable digital database of the newspaper’s 45 years of issues. King, who converted to Judaism 13 months ago before marrying CNN reporter Dana Bash, stressed the importance of preserving the history of Jewish Cleveland as the “cherished” legacy of future generations.
Since becoming a Jew, the Boston native, 45, said, “I feel like a new person who (had) lost track of who I was.” He and his wife keep kosher at home, he added, noting how faith “sets your compass.”
In a lighter vein, he joked about his interests and talents derived from his non-Jewish heritage. lHis refrigerator at home is stacked with beer. And recently he fixed his own garbage disposal, an ability passed down from his father, who taught him carpentry, plumbing and electrical skills. The traits have led his wife to often quip: “You are so not a Jew.”
