CBS followed up the likely huge ratings for the Masters final round with another great “get” on 60 Minutes – a nearly 30-minute interview with famous New York mob boss John Gotti‘s son John Gotti Jr.
It was a fascinating look into the mind of an interesting but notoriously press-averse person – who now lives quietly in Long Island with his six kids.
“If you’re to believe his story, [Gotti Jr.] wanted out,” says Steve Kroft at the beginning of the interview. “And John Gotti Jr. wants you to believe his story.”
Gotti Jr. agreed to do the wide-ranging interview after a few conditions – no other person could be interviewed on camera, and he had to have his lawyer by his side. His lawyer interrupted very briefly on just a couple occasions, so it was almost entirely a tennis match between Kroft and Gotti Jr. on all aspects of his famous father and his own life “on the streets.” “No one is likely to be watching this story more closely than the FBI,” said Kroft.
Gotti Jr. continued the legend of his father, saying Gotti “lived that life 24/7. In fact his wife and kids were second to the streets.” Later, he called the moment his father “looked at me as a street guy, knockaround guy, bouncearound guy like himself,” the “proudest moment of my life.”
One of the more emotional moments came when Gotti Jr. talked about his brother who was hit by a neighbor’s car when he was young.
Kroft: The person that was driving the car…disappeared.
Gotti Jr.: Correct.
Kroft: Do you think that was something your father was involved in?
Gotti Jr.: Probably. Knowing John, and how he was, how he felt about a lot of things, especially regarding his own children. He probably was. Do I know with certainty? No.
Adam Schefter of ESPN had strong praise for the interview on Twitter: “Anyone who missed John Gotti Jr. on 60 Minutes missed the most compelling TV of the weekend – better than anything from Augusta.”
Whether Phil Mickelson embracing his wife after winning his third green jacket or a rare look into the Gotti family was more compelling is up for interpretation. But it shows another example of the smart programming choices by CBS (and CBS News & Sports President Sean McManus) to turn a sports event’s eyeballs over to the popular news franchise:
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