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Pres. Obama Greets Diane Sawyer With A Pre-Interview Kiss

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» 28 comments

ABC News had an exclusive interview with Pres. Barack Obama, ahead of his first State of the Union speech Wednesday.

It was a big interview for Diane Sawyer – but it was jarring and a little odd to see Pres. Obama greet her with a kiss.

The interview had some newsy takeaways – most notably this soundbite: “I’d rather be a really good one-term president than a mediocre two-term president.” Also, “I can guarantee that the worst thing we could do would be to raise taxes when the economy is still this weak.”

But before the interview aired, ABC decided to edit b-roll of the initial greeting, where the President comes up to Sawyer, gives her a kiss on the cheek followed by a semi-awkward smiling exchange with his hand on her arm. This was pre-interview – and aired in Sawyer’s set-up. But this was a big moment for Sawyer, certainly her biggest since becoming the World News anchor last month, and it came across slightly un-anchor-like. And we all know the track record of evening news anchors with the President – remember Brian Williams“bow” from last year?

Are we making too much out of nothing? It was quick, and obviously the interview was truly news-making. But are questions of double standards raised when we see this type of greeting between President and Big 3 news anchor, or any reporter, especially as the Big 3 news anchors are now two-thirds women?

Judge for yourself. Here’s the kiss, and below is video of the most newsy part of the actual interview:

> Update: I went back and looked at two recent interviews, with Katie Couric and Savannah Guthrie. Both started with Pres. Obama and interviewer already seated, so the greeting was not shown.


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  • TfT

    Awe! BFFs forever.

    First clip kissing Dianne uses Obama talking point “buzzsaw”.

    Second clip makes it clear that Obama really follows what the press says about him; he almost quoted them verbatim.

    So, we have Bowing Brian, Kissing Dianne, and the perky one as “anchors” of our broadcast news. Geeze

  • gsundheim

    In this case you are definitely making way too much of it. I understand the need for content, but this is kind of ridiculous.

  • http://trickletown.vox.com/ Trickletown

    I’d have slipped my tongue in her ear. You go, Barack!

  • blueblogger

    Steve this is news why???? This is the second stupid one today. I know there has to be other things out there because I read them on other blogs!!!

  • sarainitaly

    she spent two years kissing his buttocks, what’s a little cheek kiss between good friends?

    “it came across slightly un-anchor-like”

    Considering he instigated the kiss, I don’t hold it against her. It was perhaps a little unpresidential of Obama, kissing up to the press, and all. It sure makes it look like Obama is tight with the media.

  • sueNaustin

    I have noticed he does the same thing with Nancy Pelosi, and I am not sure she really likes it because she needs to be seen as one of the guys, too. I think President Obama is a more physical touchy type of person than his “coolness” projects. He always has his hand on someone’s arm or back. I am not sure what it says about a person objecting to it. (And no, I am not talking Monica touches.)

  • TinaFromTampa

    At the risk of being banned by Mr. Karakauer, if one says BFF… what does BFF forever mean?
    (For some reason it’s ok for ImNotBlue to comment on other posts…)
    Mea maxima culpa, Mr. Steve.

  • TfT

    Did Katie get a kiss when she interviewed Obama? She clearly earned one when she swooned how “confident he is” and “so focused” and is your “confidence ever shaken” and finally – the ultra hard hitting question: “Do you ever wake up and say, damn, this is hard?”

    I wonder what all the female reporters at NBC think about this….I read that NBC has been complaining about ABC getting all the interviews lately (Stephy, now Dianne, Charlie just before he retired)…..perhaps the “kiss-up”, literally and figuratively, is required. Bowing is out, kissing is in?

  • TinaFromTampa

    Here’s an interesting scenario.
    What would POTUS do if he ever consented to an interview with Ann Coulter?

  • JimW

    Gavin Newsom’s famous Gay Marriage ““The door’s wide open now … it’s going to happen … whether you like it or not” was used (I think nefariously) to support Proposition 8. I think this “kiss” and Brian William’s “bow” will be used to discredit the press in America. Whether or not it was just an innocent little schmooze in the ear, it can and will be interpreted as the press’ BFF, whatever that means. By the way, what does it mean?

  • sueNaustin

    I don’t think it is possible for Ann Coulter to qualify. I do get your hint of a question, though, as to whether it should be a kiss or bow.

  • sueNaustin

    Also I agree with Sarainitaly. Obama initiated the peck on the cheek. I mean, isn’t Diane Sawyer a Republican anyway?

  • TfT

    MSM has been bowing to the kissing up to Obama since he came on the national stage; these outward signs of adoration won’t help with their already sorry reputations as being completely in the tank for teh One.

    I thought the press was supposed to be a watch dog, not a lap dog (paraphrasing Anne Coulter). The other pictures I have seen of the “interview” between Dianne and Barak only solidify the BFF relationship.

  • TinaFromTampa

    Maybe it escaped the attention of the non-media, non-elite who post here, but the press played the role of lap dog for essentially the first five years of Shrub’s administration and look where it got us.

  • timzank

    “TinaFromTampa says:
    January 25, 2010 at 8:40 pm
    Here’s an interesting scenario.
    What would POTUS do if he ever consented to an interview with Ann Coulter?”

    All sexual innuendo aside, I think it would be hilarious to watch her rip him to shreds. Platitudes, promises and soaring rhetoric works well on fluffers like Katy, Stephy, and Lady Di but Coulter would have Barry cowering in the corner crying like an un-aborted baby.

  • SWWT

    It’s just a way to greet someone, calm down guys. A lot of people do it.

    But I still find it weird. Anyway.

  • mcf1757

    This is a stupid story, a kiss is equivalent to a hand shake!

  • sueNaustin

    A peck on the cheek is a kiss to people? I think a kiss means a bit more to me than that. Yes, mcf, I agree it is the equivalent to a handshake. As to finding it “weird”, SWWT? Go figure. I had to do that with my aunts and grandma.

  • Duc du Berry

    Please Americans, try to show a little more sophistication and a little less puritan. It’s a greeting people, just a greeting.

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Zenophon-Abraham/861415293 Zenophon Abraham

    I can’t believe that this is a concern. I really can’t. I prefer a Woody Allen level of neurotic behavior, rather than this more Palinesque version. Woody would wonder why he didn’t bend her over and give her a wet one.

  • TfT

    Yes, it’s just a greeting between friends and acquaintances. But when the President and the Media play kissy face it demonstrates to the people (at least this person) that their relationship is indeed far too friendly. SInce when is the press the friend of the President (I know, I know, when the President is a Democrat). Even if Obama initiated the kiss, it shows his complete comfort level that the “interview” would be on the friendliest of terms. No hard hitting stuff from ABC, as evidenced by the lack of follow-up on the “deal making” on HCR and following Stephy’s acceptance of Obama’s statement that Brown won the Senate Seat because of Bush.

  • The Real Royal King

    Looks like bi-partisanship to me. President Obama and a Nixon aide.

  • sueNaustin

    TfT says:
    January 26, 2010 at 7:15 am
    “…and following Stephy’s acceptance of Obama’s statement that Brown won the Senate Seat because of Bush.”

    Is that similar to George Stephanopoulos accepting the recent ludicrous statement from Rudy Giuliani that there wasn’t a terrorist attack when George Bush was president? If so, then I totally agree that ABC should ask hard hitting questions. And push back to inane and totally false answers.

    p.s. I also didn’t mind when President Obama went into the Press Room to give Helen Thomas a birthday cupcake, a hug and a peck on the cheek. I thought that was sweet. And she asks hard questions, no matter the political party.

  • The Real Royal King

    So very true about Thomas. We would be a much stronger nation were all of our journalists so tough, so thorough. Instead, we struggle through with vacuous ideologues like Beck and Olbermann or politician-as-celebrity (and, therefore, to be handled with great care and concern for hurt feelings) dingbats like Van Susteren and King.

  • StewartIII

    ChickaBOOMer — Buss Stop: Barack Busted Bussing Big Blonde
    http://chickaboomer.blogspot.com/2010/01/buss-stop-barack-busted-bussing-big.html

  • sneedy63

    Good God. Sucking up to the media typically. If he was not inept and was a confident and competant leader,
    then he would not be feeling the need to suck and slober all over the media or anyone else. How unpresidential this act is. He is saying, “please like me, don’t hurt me. I am just a little old ignorant shrimp trying to look good.”

  • sarainitaly

    Steve – I wanted to tell you the news in Italy (Studio Aperto, Mediaset 1) covered this story today. They showed this video, complete with the Mediaite logo.

    http://video.mediaset.it/video/studioaperto/full/152718/edizione-ore-1225-del-27-gennaio.html#tf-s1-c1-o1-p1

    At the 10:35 mark

    They basically reported this story: Obama: Smoocher-in-Chief? fro Newser.com

    It was fun to see the medialite logo on the news here!

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