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Edited on Sat Nov-15-03 10:49 PM by Lisa
Normally I don't expect much from late-night celebrity interviews, since given the format of those shows it's not really helpful for learning anything about a person. Even when the guest is either a) so arrogant that everyone is looking forward to seeing some comeuppance (e.g. Bush's appearance on the show during the election), or b) relaxed and prepared enough to deliver some good stuff, there's just not enough time for a decent chat. (My ex sometimes got asked to be on those shows, and if he was having an off day, it was amazing how different he seemed on TV.) David Letterman is a pretty good interviewer, from what I've seen, but most show hosts aren't like him.
I am starting to wonder whether Dave gently set some things up beforehand. Jessica Lynch was on the Friday show. All week Dave has been moaning about how sick he feels, how woozy the drugs are making him, how he kept flubbing lines because he couldn't see the cue cards, etc. -- if he suspected that his guest wasn't going to be at her best, this might have been a subtle way to protect Jessica a bit, in case she froze up or missed a question. She was pretty quick and came across as likeable and honest (which isn't easy on TV) -- but he kept things moving along nicely.
Not that she needs much help ... but after all the garbage the freepers dumped on her for speaking out, I wouldn't be surprised if Dave quietly decided to show his support this way. (Just to underscore that she isn't some kind of undeserving ditz, let alone an opportunistic traitor.) His ego is healthy enough that he didn't feel the need to use his guest to boost himself (as some media types probably would). So, at the expense of making himself look like a wimp -- I mean, next to fractured bones and several days without painkillers, a head cold looks pretty minor! -- Jessica comes out looking both strong and self-effacing, and gets some more respect.
That was my impression of how things went, anyway. She managed to get across a couple of major things -- the Iraqi hospital staff did a lot to help her and probably saved her life -- and she feels that more credit should be given to the other people in her unit, especially her friend Lori who died in the attack.
I wouldn't be surprised if he asks her back in a few months, to check on how things are going.
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