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Couric & Co.
March 26, 2007 11:05 AM

The Edwards Interview

Posted by Greg Kandra

Katie's interview on "60 Minutes" with John and Elizabeth Edwards has generated a lot of e-mail and comments around the website, and it's prompted our sibling blog Public Eye to do a little chin-scratching about the piece.

Here at "Couric & Co.," our "in" box had over 200 e-mails about the piece this morning, and they're still pouring in. Viewers have described the interview in a variety of colorful and unflattering ways, using phrases ranging from "insulting" and "rude," to epithets (particularly some describing Katie) that are frankly unprintable.

You can check out the interview yourself, in the monitor on the left, and draw your own conclusions. Also, drop by Public Eye for more discussion on it.

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john and elizabeth edwards
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Add a Comment See all 13 Comments
by reginacucina March 28, 2007 10:43 PM EDT
Katie, shame on you for your treatment of the Edwards' on your 60 Minutes segment this week. Your questioning of them was not insightful nor was it informative. I'm all for asking politicians probing questions and I will be the first to congratulate you when and if you ever do so.

It would be great if you focused on questions about real issues instead of those which result in your becoming the center of attention.
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by linzzz101 March 27, 2007 8:34 PM EDT
I don't have an issue with this interview. I think Katie asked a lot of the questions we all had when we heard the news about Elizabeth Edward's cancer, some of the very questions my friends and I discussed. Furthermore, she presented a variety of different viewpoints and gave the Edwards plenty of time to express themselves. The Edwards did not seem uncomfortable with the direction of the interview either. From a journalistic perspective, I think this interview was fair.
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by spicy55 March 27, 2007 5:14 PM EDT
I am very disappointed with Katie. It's a shame that she ended up stooping so low. She has already wrecked the evening news ratings. Do you want to see 60 Minutes go?
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by jcorbin1958 March 27, 2007 2:07 PM EDT
You go girl! You did a great job Katie! Keep it up!
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by iksoc March 27, 2007 12:52 PM EDT
Katie Couric is such a shameless profiteer. her "some people" line of questioning was right out of the facist fox network's handbook. Couric is a total hypocrite. I guess it was her job to work for profit (not the country) when she was working at NBC while her husband died. she is as much a journalist as kermit the frog. Maybe she can try writing unreadable childrens books?
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by articulator March 27, 2007 11:53 AM EDT
I think that the interview, while uncomfortable, was fair. If John and Elizabeth Edwards were okay with it, that's good enough for me.

People were asking a lot of the questions Katie asked. All one had to do (and still can do) is surf the blogosphere and find all kinds of incredible things said about the Edwards decision. And many of the things people said were said in a mean spirit, not at all the tone Katie used.

So I do hope that Katie is okay with the intense backlash of this. She was actually being a journalist, not letting her personal feelings get in the way of the interview. And she gave Elizabeth and John the opportunity to answer their critics. I think the interview was gutsy! And that is meant as a compliment.

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by bmcgin March 27, 2007 6:59 AM EDT
Elizabeth Edwards clearly wants her husband to continue to run for President, and she wants to be out there helping him in any way she can. Bill Clinton functioned perfectly well as President, despite the huge and needless distraction of a disgraceful Republican attempt to destroy him. John Edwards should be able to focus on his job, just as Bill Clinton did, particularly so since he knows that this is what his wife wants him to do. Katie Couric did her job by raising these issues bluntly. I find no fault with her.
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by mayagrace March 27, 2007 12:56 AM EDT
Katie Couric confirms my long thought belief that she has no place delivering the nightly news or being a correspondent on "60 minutes". She always sounds juvenile and unprofessional. Her interview strategies with the Edwards was shameful. Tough questions? no... How many times did she say "Some would"... who are you referring to Ms. Couric??

Perhaps service is a big part of the Edwards' family life. Who said their choice is foresaking their family?

CBS - you made a terribly mistake and I hope to see Katie Couric leave the prestigious positions you have put her in. Elizabeth Vargas was to me the first woman in the nightly news seat.

Katie you aren't Elizabeth Vargas or Dan Rather. You are mediocre at best and lucky to be where you don't deserve to be.
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by leftcoaster2 March 26, 2007 7:15 PM EDT
Katie Couric has no place on %u201C60 Minutes.%u201D I have felt this way since her introduction to the show last year, but her 3/25/07 interview with Sen. and Mrs. Edwards was the final straw. She may interpret her interrogation as asking the tough questions, but I beg to differ. Her unrelenting negativity and cynicism sickened me. I was awed by the Edwards%u2019 ability to answer Couric%u2019s sucker punches with forthright, sincere and eloquent responses. But Couric wasn%u2019t really listening. She just continued to steamroll over the replies and reiterate the same basic question, worded in a slightly different manner. Despite her own experiences with cancer, she completely lacks a sense of empathy or encouragement. To paraphrase Lloyd Bentsen, %u201CCouric you are no Dan Rather.%u201D
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by tlabonte68 March 26, 2007 6:17 PM EDT
Katie, thank you for doing this interview. I appreciate learning more about the Edwards.

Keep up the good work!
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by dhtml5 March 26, 2007 4:43 PM EDT
Couric was truly embarrasing to watch last night! Her "hard" journalism makes Mike Wallace seem like an ambassador of good will. She should be on
"The View" or better yet, just do charity work. She is way out of her little intellectual league with both the CBS news anchor and 60 minutes. For the sake of integrity (and viewership), get rid of her!!
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by juliefarias March 26, 2007 3:24 PM EDT
I just listened to the audio of this interview and thought it was excellent.

They are taking a very unusual path and ALL of these questions need to be asked.

I applaud the interview.
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by bethwatson-2009 March 26, 2007 3:14 PM EDT
Sigh. Katie can't do anything right, can she?

Obviously, the Edwards consented to the interview. He is a political candidate. He is offering himself up to become the leader of the free world. They announced this health crisis in a press conference. This is no longer a private family matter and begs hard questions. The "60 Minutes" interview gave Sen. Edwards a chance to assert himself as a dedicated public servant.

As for comparisions of Elizabeth Edwards' illness to the tragic loss of Jay Monahan, there is little similarity. His WAS a private family matter. Katie was not running for President at the time of his illness - just anchoring a morning news show.

I grow weary of the mean-spirited criticisms and tendency to name call of many of the posters on the Couric & Co. blog. It's a far cry from the spirited, lively conversation that I believe was intended.
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