Soledad O'Brien's Amazing John Sununu Interview Should Be Taught in Journalism School

CNN's Soledad O'Brien did something which is extremely rare in television news these days: she actually did her job. And it was the best example of truly awesome journalism I've seen since Katie Couric so deftly gave Sarah Palin the opportunity in 2008 to destroy herself. Perhaps, given the unprecedented polarization and partisan vitriol in politics today, coupled with the right-wing's propaganda campaign of lies and distortion, we just might see a return of the mainstream media as a potent force in this heated election.

The action took place Tuesday afternoon, as O'Brien was interviewing former New Hampshire governor and George W. Bush Chief of Staff John Sununu. With the actual documents in hand, O'Brien pointed out the striking similarities between the Medicare plans of Mitt Romney and his controversial vice presidential running mate Paul Ryan, who seeks to change the government guaranteed health care program into a voucher system.

"But it's very different," Sununu insisted. "For example, when Obama gutted Medicare by taking $717 billion out of it, the Romney plan does not do that. The Ryan plan mimicked part of the Obama package there, the Romney plan does not. That's a big difference."

O'Brien essentially accused him of lying:

"I understand that this is a Republican talking point because I've heard it repeated over and over again. These numbers have been debunked, as you know, by the Congressional Budget Office. ... I can tell you what it says. It (Obama's Medicare plan) cuts a reduction in the expected rate of growth, which you know, not cutting budgets to the elderly. Benefits will be improved."

At this point Sununu, clearly agitated, became nasty and indignant, angered by O'Brien's insistence on fact over fiction:

"Soledad, stop this!" Sununu replied, raising his voice. "All you're doing is mimicking the stuff that comes out of the White House and gets repeated on the Democratic blog boards out there."

O'Brien continued reading from the Romney and Obama plans verbatim, and cited Factcheck.org, the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office and CNN's own independent analysis in refuting Sununu's deceptive rhetoric.

"Put an Obama bumper sticker on your forehead when you do this!" Sununu barked.

And here's where O'Brien, following a heated exchange where she demanded "Let me finish...let me finish!," demonstrated that she has more balls than anyone in television news right now:

"You know, let me tell you something. There is independent analysis that details what this is about. ... And name calling to me and somehow acting as if by you repeating a number of $716 billion, that you can make that stick with that figure as being 'stolen' from Medicare, that's not true. You can't just repeat it and make it true, sir."

In punctuating this incredible interview, O'Brien closed by reminding Sununu of how Romney has called Ryan's plan "brilliant."

Imagine an America where the political discourse is not shaped solely by lying, duplicitous surrogates like Sununu but by honorable journalists who serve as a beacon of truth in holding politicians to a higher standard.

 

Follow Andy Ostroy on Twitter: www.twitter.com/AndyOstroy

Comments

[AaronMLong]

03:21 PM on 09/10/2012

Speaking of fact-checking, John Sununu was CoS under George H. W. Bush, not George W. Bush.

[Melbeachguy]

12:11 AM on 09/06/2012

Despite the fact that Sununu was obviously being disingenuous, I do like his pugnacious style. I don't find his tone rude, maybe slightly belligerent but that doesn't bother me. And I like the way Soledad threw down the gauntlet. These sort of heated exchanges are more common in Great Britain, say, for example, during the PM's "Question Time" with parliament. All too often in this country our journalists engage our politicians in an overly obedient fashion. And, often, our politicians are overly scripted and cautious (while still lying, of course). I guess if I have to listen to a liar, I'd rather listen to a pugnacious rogue like Sununu over an overly scripted, but perhaps smarmier, Mitch McConnell. In any event, kudos for O'Brien for showing what principled journalism looks (and sounds) like!

[Fairandtrue]

12:31 AM on 08/30/2012

I was just wondering..If we sue over just about anything in this country. Why can't we sue politicians in a class action lawsuit when they use such blatant misinformation to win office or public favor. I mean wouldn't it at least be nice to see these politicians who lie like this, have to try to prove their lies in court in front of a judge. Where if they try to speak out of turn they could be held in contempt. I mean once and for all politicians would have to face their lies and if found guilty on major counts it could be anything from fines to a cap on campaign spending or let's say if the trial takes too long and runs past an election period and it was later deemed that said politician won based on lies than that politician would not be eligible to run for another term.

I mean imagine...an informed public that gets to hear the truth for once, and then gets to see those who blatantly lie exposed in a court of law and held accountable for each public policy lie they made about the opposition etc. etc.

With all things you have to beware of possibilities of corruption.

Im sure to some, or a lot of you this may sound extreme and I will admit that I'm no scholar, but seriously if I could get some feedback, RESPECTFUL feedback, as to not waste time of course. Whats your ideas?

[reginamiller8]

09:34 AM on 09/07/2012

We can sue Debbie Wasserman Schultz. Talk about a lie, she told a whopper!

[justice1906tamu2]

03:43 PM on 08/29/2012

I love me some Soledad!!! Beauty and brains!!!

[pearlx2]

11:13 AM on 08/28/2012

Candy Crowley, watch your colleague Soledad O'Brien and learn what a t.v. journalist's job is supposed to be about.

(This is another post that probably will never see the light of day).

[Suzanne Harvey]

12:43 PM on 08/22/2012

Only wish the upcoming debate moderators have as much tenacity.

[Henry Rolligns]

05:35 PM on 08/21/2012

Obviously HuffPo will applaud the lady named after a prison. She's more devout to her cultist beliefs than Tom Cruise.

[trixie1]

05:41 PM on 08/28/2012

Soledad \s(o)-le-dad\ as a girl's name is of Spanish origin, and the meaning of Soledad is "solitude". The name is from a Spanish title for the Virgin Mary, Maria de Soledad.

Henry Rollins would not approve.

[Sharon Moeller]

02:30 PM on 08/30/2012

What the h e l l does this comment add to this discussion? I'm so sick of reading comments like this junk. How about you talk about if she's right or not, and if she isn't, why isn't she. How about you talk about the fact that a blowhard tried to belittle her to make a point. Or is that the part you support? Our political discussion has been so diminished that you come here and mock someone for what their name means? What the h e l l good does that do? Add to a real discussion or keep your hate elsewhere, some of us care about what's happening to our country.

[mustreadthis]

10:04 AM on 08/21/2012

This woman should be fired. Is there anybody at CNN to complain about her. why does she keep fighting with the guest that she invites on her show. O'brien knows the questions and positions of the guest ahead of time. I mean these people have to be booked on the show (I assume the guest not just walling in off the street and winging it). So why then does she act so shocked and defensive at the answers they give.

The answer has to be that she brings certain guest on for the sole purpose of arguing on behalf of Obama, and since I have never seen her get pissy with an Obama supporter I have to say that O'brien is an advocate for Obama. Since CNN claims to be unbiased they can't have advocates as anchors; therefore she needs to go.

[biancardi]

01:14 PM on 08/28/2012

she actually was doing what journalists are supposed to do. Cut thru the lies and tell the truth. Hold her "guests" accountable for their words.

[Morepeople]

04:04 PM on 09/02/2012

On that logic you'd have to let all of Fox go.....

[truthmachine]

04:45 AM on 08/20/2012

"GettyGirl" is really John Sununu.

[jason24]

05:19 AM on 08/19/2012

i loved how his numbers changed all the time was 717bil then 711 mil to 700 bill and further more in the beginning she asked about the the Romney plan compared to the Ryan plan and he went straight to attacking Obama

[GettyGirl]

12:22 AM on 08/20/2012

as he should, Obama has NO PLAN for saving medicare you tool.

[garybrown68]

01:53 AM on 08/19/2012

I'm OK with bias, but actual facts should take precedence over bias. In this case O'Brien was wrong on the facts (see link below) and has no basis to claim objectivity. If her job is to be an objective journalist, she should be fired, because she is very clearly not doing her job. On the other hand, if she wants to do advocacy journalism, she can do it and it should be understood by her audience what her bias is. However, if CNN leaves her on the air as a supposed objective journalist, they will lose more viewers than they already have. Maybe they hope to make up for viewers seeking objective journalism with people like the commenters below as they become progressively more like MSNBC (which also has a really small audience)???

http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2012/08/what-everybody-gets-wrong-about-the-romney-and-obama-medicare-cuts/261220/

[Parkerdude]

01:08 PM on 08/19/2012

She cited numerous sources including Factcheck.org.

We can all go out and find a random source that backs our claim, but she cited multiple sources. And she's right, the money that was cut is not coming from where the Romney campaign is saying it's from.

It's been debunked multiple times, what are you on about?

[baby huey]

12:14 PM on 08/21/2012

Parker the problem is so many right winged "journalist" and "reporters" are parrots of the right wing machine that fact and fiction are blurred. By the time one myth is debunked there are 10 more that need to be fact checked and debunked, by that time the damage is done. I bet if you ask people about death pannels you would be shocked at how many would say that is part of "Obamacare". Its so bad that just telling the truth is considered being leftwing

[truthmachine]

04:47 AM on 08/20/2012

Look, Gary, anyone who doesn't call John Sununu out for attacking Ms. O'Brien and saying she was just repeating stuff from the White House is himself (that's you) a duplicitous sack of garbage.

[pearlx2]

10:59 AM on 08/28/2012

FANNED.

[garybrown68]

01:42 AM on 08/19/2012

Unfortunately, it appears left wing advocacy journalism that isn't based on even a most basic check of the facts (and that claims to already know them so no bother referring back to them) already appears to be taught in journalism schools. If the Andy Ostroy were actually a good journalist (or new what good journalism was about), he would have checked to see if O'Brien was actually right before he began singing her praises. Fortunately, the Atlantic (vice CNN and the H Post) seems to have a few people who still check facts. See below...funny, Sununu was right and O'Brien wrong...but not the first time O'Brien has let her leftist bias get in the way of her grasp of the facts...see her on Critical Race Theory for another example.

http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2012/08/what-everybody-gets-wrong-about-the-romney-and-obama-medicare-cuts/261220/

[baby huey]

12:27 PM on 08/21/2012

So Factcheck.org is wrong as well as the Congressional Budget Office both (and say it with me) are nonpartisan.

[AlexRSmith1]

11:11 PM on 08/18/2012

Well done, Soledad. That image of the old white man repeating his lies and trying to speak over you isn't unusual. You didn't accept that. You nailed him with facts. You ambushed him with facts. You were thoroughly prepared. And he was totally unprepared to be challenged by an intelligent journalist who refused to defer to him.

Good job.

[jason9045]

10:54 PM on 08/18/2012

Shame on CNN for giving him a platform in the first place, though. Getting on air and repeating talking points that are filled with lies, half-truths, and deceptions is exactly what Sununu does on O'Brien's show at least once a week. CNN is well aware of what he brings as a guest, and yet they keep inviting him back and giving him airtime. Soledad O'Brien should never have been in a situation where she needed to do this in the first place.

[Susabelle]

09:40 AM on 08/28/2012

I say Good for CNN in airing this interview. Let us shine a light on these dark corners of balatent ignorance. Someof the career politicians don't have an original thought nor have they studied the issues. It is about time we hear more interviews like this! Bring it on!!!

[jabbaciv]

07:04 PM on 08/18/2012

You can tell he did not expect a journalist to stand up to his bull. What's sad is that talking heads have gotten so used to having their lies accepted unquestioningly that they expect to get away with it always.