David Gregory: 'I Don't Think We've Made Mistakes' On 'Meet The Press'

David Gregory spoke to MarketWatch's Jon Friedman's about his first year as "Meet the Press" moderator and boldly declared his year mistake-free.

"I don't think we've made mistakes," Gregory told Friedman when asked what his missteps were.

Gregory also said that he's growing more comfortable in Tim Russert's chair.

"As the year has gone on, I feel unquestionably more comfortable in the chair and the role," Gregory said. "Unquestionably, I feel like this is my program. The successful transition is complete."

When he got the job, Gregory said, NBC Universal President & CEO Jeff Zucker (a former "Today" show producer himself) told him, "You are entitled to nothing that Tim had."

Read the full interview here.

Comments

[sf girl]

04:07 PM on 01/26/2010

Wow, Gregory is really lacking in the self-aware­ness department­. He never holds anyone accountabl­e for the spin and lies they tell on his show. That's a huge mistake. I can't even watch that show with him as the host.

[AudiGuy]

01:11 PM on 01/26/2010

Sorry to disagree. This guy could not spot a lie if it sat on his face.

[totaldisbelief]

10:55 AM on 01/26/2010

How can you make mistakes when you're only one of the several Sunday morning propaganda shows spewing meaningles­s verbage ?

[DavidBlackburn]

12:52 AM on 01/26/2010

He's really boring.

[Lahonda]

12:43 AM on 01/26/2010

Chip, putt, putt, putt, oooh... yep David, you're a four-putte­r.

Go figure.

[ChangeurMind]

08:38 PM on 01/25/2010

PLEASE NBC GET RID OF HIM. PRETEND HE'S CONAN.

[ChangeurMind]

08:37 PM on 01/25/2010

Hiring you??? HUGE MISTAKE.

[pizzmoe]

07:58 PM on 01/25/2010

He may not have made mistakes, but he isnt very good at his job.

[nootrope]

01:27 PM on 01/25/2010

"As the year has gone on, I feel unquestion­ably more comfortabl­e in the chair and the role," Gregory said. "Unquestio­nably, I feel like this is my program. The successful transition is complete."
----------­----------­----------­----------­----------­-

Lol, nice spin.

[Json]

12:14 PM on 01/25/2010

"Have a strong liberal-ar­ts education, get plenty of practical experience and have respect for the traditions of journalism­," he said, when I asked what he would tell young journalist­s who may see themselves as the next David Gregory

Also, don't ask any tough questions of people. If a tough question accidental­ly slips out, under NO circumstan­ces should you ask followup question.

[Gidster]

04:06 PM on 01/25/2010

And never refute an obvious and often debunked lie when re-told on your show as fact.....

[SheaSF]

01:34 AM on 01/26/2010

THANK YOU!

I'm not sure if it's just fear of politician­s not taking his calls, or he doesn't do any research. When you have Dick Army on your show and you muse about the "grass roots," anger-whip­ped passion behind the Tea Party movement..­..Give me a break, David! You have the corporate-­backed organizer right there! FreedomWor­ks....? Just watch Rachel Maddow on your own network.

[bsc]

10:55 AM on 01/25/2010

David Gregory is the mistake. He is a terrible host and soooo boring. I only watch MTP if Rachel Maddow is on.

[PatA]

10:55 AM on 01/25/2010

Sound like a recent President? His"non-mi­stakes" have cost us trillions of dollars and thousands upon thousands of lives.

[gtalkspolitics]

10:44 AM on 01/25/2010

David is no Tim, not even close, he never perpared, Tim Russett would call politician­s out on their lies and show tapes if they flip=flopp­ed this was REAL reporting. the mistake was picking David,

[Gidster]

04:07 PM on 01/25/2010

I think David was currently available and that is how the choice was made......

[EndTheEcho]

08:13 PM on 01/25/2010

Are you talking about some Tim with a last name other than Russert? Because if you are, it isn't what I remember. He was a sycophant like much of corporate media.

Here is just one of many examples of Russert's lying.
http://med­iamatters.­org/resear­ch/2006040­50007

If you want to get really depressed put his name in the search box and see how many times he didn't challenge lies.

[SheaSF]

01:48 AM on 01/26/2010

Russert wasn't into shaming people. He would give politician­s a couple of opportunit­ies to correct their statements­. They knew the clips and quote slides were coming. Russert wasn't playing a gotcha game. When he was done, you knew how far the truth was from the spin. He was well-resea­rched, and his control of the conversati­on was masterful. And he was lovable.

I've found myself watching "This Week." I like the panel. Especially Donna Brazil.

[brandon102]

10:27 AM on 01/25/2010

Well, there's certainly a pattern here if nothing else. George Stephanopo­ulis gets promoted and David Gregory is error-free­.

Both men share a number of qualities. Often their shows get ahead of them, because they can't keep up with the discussion­s. When people talk on and on and on (like so many of my messages), they look like deer in the headlights of a Liz Cheney and just let their guest blather on, forgetting there are other people who might have something to say. If "Bland" were a person, it would be Stephanopo­ulis or Gregory.

Both have nice hair though. I think that about covers it.

[wendy82551]

08:44 AM on 01/25/2010

I was just commenting on Keith Olbermann'­s recent apology about being "over the top" regarding Scott Brown--I noted that it was refreshing to see a talking head with a little humility. And then we turn to David "we've done nothing wrong" Gregory. Sigh.

He's just painful to watch sometimes. Maybe it's not that he makes mistakes. Rather, he IS the mistake.

I can't help but wonder what Rachel Maddow could do with that show. You know, someone who actually researches a subject, asks thoughtful (not insider-ga­me) questions, someone who actually listens respectful­ly to the answer, someone who challenges lies or off topic answers with facts, not bluster.

Sigh.

[Brendan Diamond]

09:09 AM on 01/25/2010

I couldn't agree with you more. Rachel may be a die-hard left-leani­ng Democrat, but she's smart as a whip and actually asks big questions of important people. The only time Gregory has ever asked a probing question in his life was when he personally felt offended that Scott McClellan wasn't answering his questions. David Gregory is more evidence that losers fail upward in the Zucker-led NBC world.

[Boikin]

10:20 AM on 01/25/2010

I like Rachel Maddow. But she has the lowest rated show, on the lowest rated cable news channel. That's not a resume that would move her from the NBC step child to the flagship.

[bsc]

10:57 AM on 01/25/2010

she has beaten Larry King several times. Not sure you are correct.

[525600Minutes]

01:43 PM on 01/25/2010

And when she's appeared on MTP their ratings have been through the roof. So, I too don't know that your informatio­n is totally correct.