Media top headlines October 1
In media news today, Katie Couric says she reached out to Matt Lauer, offered sympathetic texts following his 2017 sexual misconduct scandal, 'The View' blasts LeBron James for refusing to advocate for the coronavirus vaccine, and networks avoid McAuliffe's debate remark opposing parents having a say in what schools teach
Former "Today" show anchor Katie Couric ripped one-time rival Diane Sawyer in her new tell-all book, admitting that she "loved" getting under her skin as the two battled to be the top star in morning TV news.
According to the New York Post, who obtained a copy of the "Going There" memoir ahead of its Oct. 26 release date, Couric described how the competition between the two was getting out of control, and that she at one point declared of the former "Good Morning America" anchor, "That woman must be stopped."
The book describes how Couric and Sawyer battled over exclusive interviews. In one instance, Couric beat out Sawyer for an interview with two teens who had been abducted because her team pointed out that she was a widowed mother of two girls, while Sawyer was a stepmother.
The book describes how Couric and Sawyer battled over exclusive interviews. (Reuters)
Couric also described how Sawyer's infamous interview with the late celebrity singer Whitney Houston was almost exploitative, according to The Post, and that she used Houston's personal troubles to get good sound bites.
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"I wonder who she had to blow to get that," Couric wondered about a separate interview Sawyer was able to obtain with a woman who gave birth to twins at the age of 57.
"I’m pretty sure I speak for Diane when I say neither of us ever resorted to actual fellatio to land an interview, but we both engaged in the metaphoric kind — flattering gatekeepers, family members, and whoever else stood in the way of a big get," Couric wrote, according to The Post.
Katie Couric and anchor Matt Lauer on Friday, Jan. 6, 2017. (Peter Kramer/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty Images )
Couric received some criticism ahead of her memoir's release, with former colleague Ashleigh Banfield forcefully pushing back on her claims that she and her father sought to remove her as the top "Today" show anchor.
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Couric also admitted that she expressed sympathy to her former colleague Matt Lauer, who was fired by NBC following a 2017 sexual harassment scandal, sending him supportive texts that described how much she loved and cared for him.
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