Edwards Furious With ABC Over Handling Of Interview

On Friday night John Edwards appeared on ABC Nightline to discuss his affair with Rielle Hunter. The segment, which lasted a full 30 minutes, aired at 11:30pm ET, well outside of prime time. Nonetheless, Broadcasting and Cable is reporting that Edwards is furious with ABC for how they handled the interview:

Edwards had hoped to control the news cycle by making his admission late on a Friday night when the country was watching the Olympics and the long weekend yawned ahead.

According to multiple sources, Edwards was apoplectic that ABC News began promoting the story early on Friday, giving the rest of the media a chance to play catch-up and site ABC News' report. (Representatives for Edwards did not return a call or e-mail for comment.)

Edwards subsequently made solicitous calls to multiple reporters including CBS News' Bob Schieffer, who also talked to a distraught Elizabeth Edwards.

Read all about the Edwards story on HuffPost's big news page.

Comments

[machdog]

Tell me why everyone is so up in arms about Edwards cheating on his wife? Who are we anyway, the moral police for politicians. The fact that Edwards wife is thought to be a lovely person, and she has been diagnosed with cancer should not make a difference. When you believe that your wife/husband/partner is not going to deceive you in some way during your relationship, you are fooling yourself. Are we so naive to think that we have the perfect mate in an imperfect world? Remember critics: We should not be so pompous to think that our relationship is on such solid ground that we will not fall victim to deceit. For thirty years, in public, Elizabeth portrayed John to be a loving husband and family man, now,because he was caught cheating, that negates all the good that he has done. Plus, are we
to believe that Elizabeth thought that John was wired differently than many other men who have been
caught cheating. Elizabeth knew in 2006 that he was having an affair, if she is so honorable, why diid
she encourage him to run for President, and keep his affair a secret. Elizabeth was standing right next to him deceiving the entire country with their happily married superficial image. My heart goes
out to their children, they are the victims.

[Teritt]

Seriously, didn't he watch the debate on ABC w/Hillary & Obama? What made him think ABC would be anything other than what they were? The hatchet job they did during the debate in Philly makes me not even want to watch their sitcoms anymore. Edwards only has himself to blame for that one (too).

[TruepatriotinRI]

John Edwards has no moral collateral to be angry with anybody for anything. Maybe he and the other creep, Bill Clinton, could go live in a hole somewhere and never burden the public again with the sight of them.

[MPCarr]

What if Edwards had won the nomination and then this came out? There is a big difference between having an affair during a presidential campaign vs. not during a campaign, given the amount of damage you can inflict on your party. It could have destroyed the Democrats chances of victory. And the elimination of Edwards early on could have helped Clinton win the primary. But the media is in the tank for Obama so they did not report it for that reason..

To quote David Carr at the NYT: ! "I was taught when I was a young reporter that it's news when we say it is!"

And of course we know Edwards has lied about the timeline, and that he still saw Ms. Hunter in 2007, and about Edwards payments to her.

[bobdob]

I always knew Edwards was a complete phony.

[PinaPopper]

Poor John! I feel really sorry for him. NOT!!!!

[muddwolf]

The best thing that Mr. Edwards could do right now is to drop out of circulation and spend time with his wife and children. What a hypocrite. Go hide under a rock Mr. Edwards.

[mvpeach10]

Anyone who wants to be an elected politician has to accept that they are giving up their privacy. While serious corruption is far more culpable, most journalists are not smart enough to cover the complexity of financial misdeeds. Any idiot can cover sexual indiscretions, plus the fact that it increases both ratings and their bottom line. Since most politicians have huge egos and love getting in front of the cameras, those cameras will be there when they don't want them too. John Edwards needs to go home and repair the damage he's done to his family. My guess--his political career is over.

[Ramus]

He should have done what Gov. Patterson did..announce it up front before he campaigned for President. Guys do this sort of thing all the time...a story as old as the hills. Sometimes women do it too.

[cynatnite]

He hoped to control a news cycle? Is he nuts?

Corporate media does that.

[WasteNJ]

What's the big deal, Republicans do it all the time and stay in office. So Edwards can't do a good job in government because he had an affair?

Let's see a show of hands, anybody here NEVER cheated?

Please. This is a MSM attempt to damage and diminish Edwards 2 years after the fact. He was viewed as a moral and straight forward persona, and that's what is being taken away. Sure it was his fault for having the affair, so now he's officially normal.

[RebelAlliance]

"Let's see a show of hands, anybody here NEVER cheated?"

I haven't, and proud of it!

[amcg50]

The issue really isn't the affair...It is the hubris and arrogance to believe that his being President is more important than Progressives winning the White House in 08. Had he been nominated we would be SOL....

[cynatnite]

Nope. Have never cheated.

Lots of normal people don't cheat on their partners.

[Ndw]

Never cheated.

[BlueZoo]

Wait one cotton-picking minute, Mr. Edwards! YOU chose to be interviewed on ABC! They didn't kidnap you and bring you to their studios. Your ego did that! You appeared thinking you could burnish your tarnished image and you obviously don't have clue. You are no longer the fair-haired boy and I sincerely doubt if you could be elected as dog catcher in your state or any other! Please. Go back to your palatial estate and contemplate how low you have really fallen. Get some humility injections. btw: Saying you're the only one, not your family, responsible for this debacle is the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard. You made and acted on a conscious decision to dance with the devil. Now, go pay the piper!

[BlueZoo]

I forgot the smarmiest comment of all: "Elizabeth was in remission at the time!" - as if THAT is an excuse for his actions! I took that as meaning when she didn't have cancer at all, he let the good times roll! Creep!

[mesmerize]

John Edwards doesn't own anyone anything but his wife. He shouldn't have to explain his affair. The only thing he should have said was he will no longer be in politics. That's it and that's all. He made a bad judgement. It happens. He is after all a normal person like the rest of us.

[roshni]

Why is he entitled to manipulate the press and spin this on his terms then? No one forced him to give the interview. He could have just said nothing.

[qdemn7]

Absolute rubbish... When a person is running for President, is asking for our vote AND our money, he owes us the truth. IF, and here's the point, IF he's going to trot out his credentials as a family man, and uses his wife with cancer as a vital part in his campaign.

If these politicians don't want to have to explain their affairs, then and declare their personal life off limits upfront and keep their spouse and their kids completely and totally out of the campaign.

Elizabeth Edwards is as much at fault here as John Edwards for this whole fiasco, by allowing him to run when she knew this could come out. And they should have known it WOULD come out.

[philosopherkingtomas]

Edwards almost destroyed the democratic party this year (possible veep, candidate), how egotistical!

he can not be forgiven for this risky behaviour either, bye bye fancy pants fancy haircut lying John.

[philosopherkingtomas]

Dont forget that McCain Giuliani and Gingrich all did the same as Edwards!
McCain-Bush was still married and living with his wife in 1979 while, according to The New York Times' Nicholas Kristof, "aggressively courting a 25-year-old woman who was as beautiful as she was rich." McCain divorced his wife, who had raised their three children while he was imprisoned in Vietnam, then launched his political career with his new wife's family money. In 2000, McCain managed to deflect media questioning about his first marriage with a deft admission of responsibility for its failure. Both conducted well-documented affairs in the last decade--while still in public office.
Carol, his wife at the time, had once been quite a babe herself apparently, until a near-fatal car accident (while her husband was in Vietnam) left her 4 inches shorter, overweight and on crutches

How many will guess that Carol McCain is quite possibly a hero of a different kind of war? How many will read between the lines of her exalted ex-husband's legend and decide that she is simply one of the most courageous examples of a wounded mother who has loved and protected her children at all costs?


http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-1024927/The-wife-John-McCain-callously-left-behind.html

[MPCarr]

"Dont forget that McCain Giuliani and Gingrich all did the same as Edwards!"

We know about it already. McCain told the reporters himself.

By Edwards having a affair up to 2007, during the primaries, he put the whole Democrat Party at a severe risk and had it been reported earlier, Hillary might have won the nomination. And he is still lying about the details.

[booker52]

Hey Edwards admitted to the affair then trys to control an interview about this??? Please this is just too much. Note to John, get over it and move on. It's all over the news and now you and your poor wife have to deal with the fallout.

[IowaCali]

How about if the MSM "gets over it and moves on". Enough already!