Oh good: 'Gov. Sarah Palin will sit down with ABC News' Charlie Gibson for her first interview since winning the Republican vice presidential nomination, the network's news division confirmed today.' Just the type of softball questions McCain's camp was hoping for. That's because Gibson has solidified his reputation as an anchor unable to come up with anything of substance to quiz his subjects on. The upside: At least it's not Larry King?
Charlie Gibson has been giving Brian Williams a run for his ratings — so do you really think ABC is going to let him go? Uh uh. So sit on your hands while Gibson's agent finds out how much they can gouge Disney for while he resigns his contract, and while Diane Sawyer continues to fume. [NYT]
• Vivicia A. Fox has an alleged sex tape she's trying to distance herself from. [NSFW, duh]
• Meanwhile, Amy Fisher has a real sex tape she's trying to promote. CONTINUED »
Months after having her second child, and weeks after Charles Gibson pushed her aside to lead World News Tonight on ABC, Elizabeth Vargas is opening up. To People.
Besides raving about her new baby, Samuel Wyatt, talking about how much she adores her family, and prepares to head back to work, Vargas also talks about her struggles at ABC. And when she gets back to work, she will be hosting a special on whether or not working moms can "have it all."
… My first night back we have a major project airing."
The topic is something Vargas knows a thing or two about. "We have decided to address the issue of whether or not working mothers can have it all," she says. "Obviously, I'm exhibit A for: you can't. At least, not if "all" is defined as anchoring World News Tonight."
Obviously. Well, that's nice that ABC is having Vargas to this little special episode. That way all moms around the country can know that they aren't the only ones who feel like failures because the work force doesn't support the demands of balancing parenting and a career.
A recent poll, conducted by Pew Research Center, took 1,506 people's response to Katie Couric. In case anyone had any doubt about how people feel about her. More people definitely know who she is (in comparison to Charles Gibson or Brian Williams) but more people hate her.
The most surprising news, however, is the way in which people describe Katie in comparison to other network anchors.
In the poll, "good" was the most mentioned word for all three anchors. But some words used to describe Couric — "perky," "cute," "nice," "energetic" and "bubbly" — were not used for Williams or Gibson.
We're pretty sure this is not some kind of sarcastic joke. They really call Katie cute and bubbly and not Brian or Charles. But Brian is nice. And Charlie is energetic enough to have hosted GMA for the past 70 years. We don't understand why the people polled wouldn't call the male anchors "perky." And nobody else has ever talked about this subject or mentioned it or analyzed it before.
Poll finds Couric 'cute' — to a point [USA Today]
It was just one year ago that ABC news anchor and central television news figure Peter Jennings passed away of lung cancer. No, this is not just a reminder that you should quit smoking, it is also a reminder of how the media honored his memory.
There was of course the announcement of his death, the naming of W. 66th St. "Peter Jennings Way," and ABC stripping his name from their newscast.
What was once World Tonight With Peter Jennings was quickly renamed World News Tonight and then recently dubbed World News With Charles Gibson.
Wait, wasn't there someone in between there? Hmm? We just can't wait to see how ABC remembers Elizabeth Vargas.
Remembering Peter Jennings One Year Later [TV Newser, Mediabistro]
We just heart that HuffPo people ranker. It's much prettier and easier to read than Google trends, and not as corporate.
So, we thought, why not see who in the blogosphere is talking about Charles Gibson? Since today was his last day on Good Morning America and all, we're sure there are plenty of people of people talking about it. Even if the New York Times didn't even mention it on their media pages. Surely, they must be talking about him more than they are Katie Couric, who's been hiding out in her new Hamptons house since leaving the Today show. Right?
Not so much. So, we could go on and on about how it was his last day, and try to say Charles Gibson one or two more times to try and even out the score, but the reality is, nobody but ABC is really even noticing. Can we say it? Can we insert the "sorry Charlie" here?
Another listicle issue for New York — hooray! It's been an excruciating month or so since the Influentials issue, so we guess we were due for another elitist best of the best lifesavers round-up. (And while it's great and all, may we please request the next list be "the top hot single doctors?" Thanks.)
Intern Zack approached his weekly NY mag reading with vigor, jumping on the fake Richard Johnson that's been running about town, the millionth "anchor wars" article, and the best ways to drink your way around the World Cup. (We are this close to shouting, gooooooooaaaaaaalllll ….)
• We know that break-ups are always rough, but did Jay-Z really put Damon Dash out on the street? Give us a break … the guy still drives a Maybach! [Why Damon Dash Hates Mondays]
• As Joe Hagen tackles the "evening news wars," we can't help but think of Anchorman. Well, at least until we realize that Charlie Gibson isn't at all funny … even if the bizarre cartoon depictions of him and his war enemies are. [Charlie the Conqueror]
• From the "other" Richard Johnson, we learn that the Page Six editor is not welcome at La Esquina and people think RJ knows what's up with Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie. [Richard Johnson’s Doppelgänger]
• Andy Warhol's nephew honors his legendary uncle by selling off all the crap that Uncle A left him. [Uncle Andy’s Hand-Me-Downs]
• All that stuff about the World Cup bringing people together? Complete bullshit. Go drink with your own kind! [It's The World Cup: Drink Up!]
• Despite having one of the more off-beat jobs in this industry, New York Times crossword editor Will Shortz inpsires New York to label him the biggest word-nerd of our time. [The Puzzlemaster’s Dilemma]
Table of Contents [New York]
Editorial Director
