CNN's John Roberts Declares "Wright-Free Zone" For Obama Interview

NEW YORK -- CNN's John Roberts declared his interview with Barack Obama on Monday a "Rev. Wright-free zone" to telegraph he wouldn't ask the Democratic presidential contender about the controversy over his former pastor.

The reference was flip, but Roberts primarily talked about Iran, the gas tax and the economy during a six-minute interview with Obama that aired at 6:20 a.m. EDT.

During appearances last week at the National Press Club and elsewhere, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright repeated his beliefs that the U.S. government may have developed the AIDS virus to infect the black community and that the U.S. had invited the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. Obama denounced the remarks.

The first 11 questions that NBC's Tim Russert asked Obama on "Meet the Press" on Sunday were about the Wright matter.

Roberts said it was clear that nothing new had been said about the issue for a week, and that many of his viewers believed it was time for CNN to move on.

"Rather than spend one second of time on an issue that isn't really relevant to people because there's been no news on it, I thought I'd spend the time talking to these candidates about issues that really matter to people," he said.

Roberts, co-host of CNN's morning program, interviewed Hillary Clinton an hour after talking to Obama. He didn't ask her about Wright, either.

The veteran anchor said he made the decision on his own, and has since received about 100 e-mails, all overwhelmingly positive, about it.

The declaration of a "Wright-free zone" wasn't done to telegraph to Obama that he was going easy on him, Roberts said. Rather, he was trying to tell viewers it was going to be a substantive interview, he said.

"All of the questions that are currently out there on this have been asked and answered," he said.

It doesn't mean he's closing the book on the issue, Roberts said. If Obama becomes the Democratic nominee and Republicans criticize his relationship to Wright, he'll likely return to it, he said.

Comments

[NoSillyName]

Thank you, John Roberts. You know how to cut thru the BS. CBS was foolish in not keeping you. They've made a long list of mistakes in judgement.

[WriterWriter]

Why has not one reporter ever questioned Clinton on her own long-term relationship with White???

When the Clinton husband was caught screwing with an intern, the first person the Clinton couple called for support - in the Whitehouse - was White.

[littlepuffycloud]

Well, wasn't that big of him? He still had to get Wright's name in there though. If nothing else, I hope the entire country has seen what a bunch of vultures the MSM really are.

[DMW1]

Congratulations John for taking an ethical stance and focusing on the issues.

[cla62]

He can declare it all he wants, but other than being black, wright is the reason the rock star doesn't have a chance in November. The truth hurts boys!!

[UsofA]

It's reassuring to know McCain supporters like yourself are capable of getting stuck on a non-issue like Wright while the rest of the country moves on. Now, go clean your gun and wait for your next instructions from Limbaugh and Fox News .

[adama50]

ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha nice one.

[WriterWriter]

What I like most about McCain supporters is their amazing ability to ignore the fact that their candidate was one of the five major players in the savings and loan scandal and that makes him as close to a felon as a person can be; and that they can ignore that the McCain barbie doll wife IS a convicted crook who stole money and drugs from her OWN aid organisation.

the McCains are as crooked as they come. If the worst possible ever scenario happens and the US has only McCain (Mr. Wax figure) and Clinton (Reverend White is my spiritual buddy too) to choose from, the country is effectly permanently screwed from the top down.

[96Bravo]

I knew there was a reason I liked John Roberts. He should have succeeded Dan Rather on CBS.

[suec03]

Like Peter Jennings, he is a newsman who grew up and started his reporting career in his native Canada. Maybe that gave him a broader perspective on the significance of this US presidential election to the wellbeing of people around the world and of the importance of spending airtime on more substantive issues.

[Bulbul]

I understand, Roberts is a musician too..

[SpinCycleRadio]

I think that this attitude, that Wright was 'old news' will begin to catch on.

Of course the right wing will never let go of it. Heck if Clinton gets the nomination you can be that they will be bringing back the Whitewater matter. How often do you see those folks still bringing back Chappaquiddick?

[cla62]

Corruption has a way of hanging in ones closet doesn't it? Unless you're a democrat, then everyone is supposed to forget, right?

[mellene]

Good for John. It's about time some newscaster with some ethical behavior stopping slamming Wright. It would be more legitimate on the press's part if they used the same tactics on McCain's so called spiritual leaders. I have lost respect for those newscasters who choose to just use the Wright card, but overlook the religious nuts backing McCain.

[jnw147]

SENATOR OBAMA DIDN'T LISTEN, BUT MAYBE YOU WILL.

I have said it over and over again: We, as African-Americans, will do, and cause, more harm to each other than any other ethnic group could. And the Honorable Rev. Louis Farrakhan and the Rev. Jeremiah Wright has, once again, proven my point. Both of these men are intelligent, and both are politically astute. Minister Farrakhan was well aware that any support, whether directly or indirectly, that he would give to Senator Barack Obama would create a negative backlash for the Senator. But rather than being silent, he decided to speak out. And Senator Obama was forced to publicly renounce, denounce and reject the Minister. Then you have the Rev. Jeremiah Wright. Who Senator Obama refers to as his mentor, friend, and spiritual adviser- making inflammatory, derogatory and incendiary, and, in my opinion, blasphemous remarks(by using God's name in vain), that were not only divisive, but racial in tone and substance. Both of these men were concerned more about being in the spotlight themselves than what was best for Senator Obama and his campaign. Because both of them knew, well in advance, how their statements, and comments, would be viewed and received by the media, many in the general public, and those in the Jewish community. The Clinton campaign must be breathing a sigh of relief. And they have the Rev. Louis Farrakhan, and the Rev. Jeremiah Wright to thank for that. Barack Obama must win.

[MrBlu]

This is why Sharpton held back his support knowing that if he backed either candidate that he'd be doing harm to either candidate's campaign. My guess is that he wants to support Obama but is very aware that he has more enemies than friends in the political world.

And with Hillary winning the majority of the white vote she's counting on white American's holding on their prejudices and fear a black man in office. Especially one that's even remotely associated with Rev. Wright.

I'm trying to stay optimistic but it's getting tougher. At least CNN is taking the high road and sticking to the issues.

[Bulbul]

I congratulate John Roberts for taking the high road, the first Anchor on any twenty four hour news channel.

What is the outrage here ? Rev. Wright has been the object for this outrage for what ? Late Falwell, and now Pat Robertson have said worse thing over the years..where was the outrage there ?
I am a Hillary supporter and I am not outraged ! Senetor Obama, does not owe any explanation to any one for chosing or not chosing the Rev.
Media is making this a huge issue by giving McCain a free pass, gave Bush the same.
They say it is not about race ? Oh Yes, they are the one making it just that.

Obama should be allowed to move on, and Rev. Wright should be allowed to do what he does...

[vaughan]

I agree with you. I'm so glad to hear this--I'm an Obama supporter and this gives me hope that all of the Dems will get along!

[Krikkit]

I'm a bit more cynical than you are. As he said, the VIEWERS demanded that they stop with the Wright-gate bashing because they are tired of it. That equates to loss of sponsor dollars if people start tuning out if they aren't listened to. You can bet that if there was still a buck to be squeezed out of the affair, he would have hit Obama again with Wright.

McCain will become the issue when viewers start demanding that the news focus on it. It's really the end of the cycle where MSM 'news' is now entertainment generated on demand.

[TIMLHOWE]

"To avoid being mistaken for a sellout, I chose my friends carefully. The more politically active black students, the foreign students. The Chicanos. The Marxist professors and structural feminists and punk-rock performance poets." Barack Hussein Obama, "Dreams From My Father" (emp. added).
"I FOUND A SOLACE IN NURSING A PERVASIVE SENSE OF GRIEVANCE AND ANIMOSITY AGAINST MY MOTHER'S RACE." Barack Hussein Obama, "Dreams From My Father" (emp. added, caps. in original).
"The emotion between the races could never be pure..... the other race would always remain just that: menacing, alien, and apart." Barack Hussein Obama, "Dreams From My Father" (emp. added).
"That hate hadn"t gone away," [Obama wrote, blaming] "white people" some cruel, some ignorant, sometimes a single face, sometimes just a faceless image of a system claiming power over our lives." Barack Hussein Obama, "Dreams From My Father" (emp. added).
"[The globe is a place] where white folks" greed runs a world in need, apartheid in one hemisphere, apathy in another hemisphere.... That's the world! On which hope sits." Barack Hussein Obama (quoting Wright), "Dreams From My Father" (emp. added).

[mortrefuge]

"Obliterate Iran" "The Rich? Bless us!" "I don't listen to experts, their elitist!" "I will single handedly dismantle Opec!" "So I made a mistake (about being under sniper fire), I'm human, I know it surprises some people." "I THINK I have the experience, I know McCain has the experience." "who cares when I last shot a gun, or went to church. I went to church on Easter. So?" "Screw them! They didn't vote for us (about white working class voters)." "I was against NAFTA, while I was promoting it." "I was against outsourcing while I was promoting it (for 700 jobs in New York)." "I could get elected as senator in Punjab." "the money grubbers on Wall Street who have sold out America in the last 7 years (Chelsea works as an executive for a Hedge Fund on Wall Street, her family has made $109 million dollars in the past 7 years, much of it from Bill's work as a rainmaker for foreign governments and businesses from an offshore Cayman Island business)."



Face it. Hillary is running as a Republican. If she is the nominee, we will have 2 Republicans competing for the Presidency. Why would any self-respecting Democrat vote for her?

[mortrefuge]

"Obliterate Iran" "The Rich? Bless us!" "I don't listen to experts, their elitist!" "I will single handedly dismantle Opec!" "So I made a mistake (about being under sniper fire), I'm human, I know it surprises some people." "I THINK I have the experience, I know McCain has the experience." "who cares when I last shot a gun, or went to church. I went to church on Easter. So?" "Screw them! They didn't vote for us (about white working class voters)." "I was against NAFTA, while I was promoting it." "I was against outsourcing while I was promoting it (for 700 jobs in New York)." "I could get elected as senator in Punjab." "the money grubbers on Wall Street who have sold out America in the last 7 years (Chelsea works as an executive for a Hedge Fund on Wall Street, her family has made $109 million dollars in the past 7 years, much of it from Bill's work as a rainmaker for foreign governments and businesses from an offshore Cayman Island business)."

Face it. Hillary is running a Republican. If she is the nominee, we will have 2 Republicans competing for the Presidency. Why would any self-respecting Democrat vote for her?

[belief08]

Amen! AMEN!!! I couldn't have said it better... All these quotes; her supporters should be looking at and wondering, WHY AM I VOTING FOR THIS WOMEN?

[fanoftruthiness]

The more it's played now, the less impact it has in November, so let it roll!

[drblack]

Is any sane person still interested in the Wright thing?
I stopped watching or reading at the first mention of this irrelevant fluff .
Wright has nothing to do with Obama as President.

[Tropiholic]

You mean he wanted to discuss real issues with Obama ! Hats off to John Roberts for making an attempt to be a real journalist.

[thinkb4uleapII]

I applaud John Roberts for discussing the issues for the most part. I find it a little disingenuous though that he would initially make the declaration of a "Wright-free zone". It seems by doing so, he immediately injected Rev. Wright into the consciousness of his viewers, in a memorable way at that. The substance of his interview would have been even more evident without it.

[Josiwe]

It was a clever pivot, useful in bringing in ratings without actually sinking into the muck. Call it toe-dipping. Compared to Stephy & George, this guy is Cronkite.

[NCMan]

The reason that Rev Wright is still an issue and is still discussed is because voters who are not already supporting Obama do not believe Obama when he claims that he was not aware of Wright's opinions over the last 20 years.

Obama didn't leave the church years ago because membership there was politically advantageous in Chicago and for hil ILL State senate career. It also wasn't a problem for him to run for the US Senate.

We all knwo that Obama was aware of the danger Wright posed for his presidential campaign because he tried to keep him under wraps over a year ago. But, if Obama has quit the church in preparation for his presidential campaign it would have caused many questions and it waould have caused him trouble with religious voters. He ttok a gamble that it wouldn't be as damaging as it has been and he lost the gamble.

He is lucky that it didn't come out early enough to have effected the Super Tueday primaries and the 11 primaries afterward that he won.

It likely won't cost him the nomination, but it may well cost him the general election.

[JerryTheAngel]

Hillary Clinton has a better chance to defeat Senator Obama then John McWarmonger does.

[Dailyfare]

"The reason that Rev Wright is still an issue and is still discussed is because voters who are not already supporting Obama do not believe Obama when he claims that he was not aware of Wright's opinions over the last 20 years."

What Obama has said: he was aware that the Pastor had made controversial statements, but in was not in church for the GD America statements.

Who gives a crap? I assume that a man who can get through Harvard Law can think for himself and is not that impressionable.

[nerakami]

Why are we so blinded to the fact that we judge a man by his own words and deeds and NOT those of another??

Go back and review Obama's voting records, his old speeches, his life as a husband and a father.... those are indicative of who this man is !!! and NOT the words or beliefs of another person.
This is SO ridiculous. Why don't you tell millions of Catholics to walk out of their Church and denounce and reject the Pope who for many years harbored priests who molested children by the thousands.

Get real people and stop this non-sense...

[cam737]

Thank you John Roberts. A "Wright-free zone" was the most refreshing thing I heard all week from a journalist.

I agree nerakami. I don't think Obama really has a big problem. Wright's words were not Obama's words. What if we held all the candidates responsible for all the words and actions of those they knew? We'd never get to the issues.

[Oldchef]

Thank you. All this guilt by association crap is distracting people from their real problems, which is just what the Republicans want and Mrs. Clinton is enabling all that. The revelations that her husband and two chief advisers were in the pay of the Colombian government got hardly any coverage because the multi national corporations who own the news outlets want the "free trade" deals to go through, so no "guilt by association" there. Ignore that person behind the curtain, look at this rev. wright, he's a different color than you and he dresses funny and says outrageous things, so anybody who went to his church is different, must be unamerican. But pay no attention to that hand in your pocket stealing your wallet and passing it to the oil company and the insurance company and the credit card bank.

[booker52]

Thank God someone said that. Enough of this joker. How about the rest of the media putting a ban on this guy as well??

[ObamaCanada]

John Roberts is a Canadian journalist and a good one he sure has come far from doing Muchmusic rockstar interviews.

[deweshk]

What about not mentioning the Reverend's name at all. Hypocrites !

[Benton]

The moment I hear Rev. Wrights name mentioned or posted on the television screen I change the channel. At this point to even mention this so-called issue is to disrespect my intelligence.

[belief08]

People, give me a break; you know this is a republican tactic to throw the campaign back into their miserable hands. They want to run this country for another 8 years. You see what they had done so far. Do you want it to deteriorate further. Think of your kids and what they will have to look forward to. We have a problem with Social Security, will your kids have that when it time. Will we have it when it is time?

We heard those type of remarks and worse all our lives from your parents, your parents; parents and their parents and their parents. So, don't act like his words disgusts you, because it disgusts us when it was used against us by your people. It's out there and it continues to be out there, just look at the blogs. It's like the resurgents of the KKK and neo-nazism. So, your disgusts is our disgusts; just let it alone.

[Grannysue]

I watched the interview, but he just couldn't help but to slip in a little of Wright, like asking how that contraversey has affected his campaing, so don't applaud him just yet, it's still the Clinton News Network and they are having a really hard time trying to not focus on slamming Obama, but at least this guy tried!