You might have heard of Larry King, he’s been around for a while.
He’s 75 years old and he’s an American TV and radio host.
This is from Wikipedia: He is recognized in the United States as one of the premier broadcast interviewers of modern times … he has conducted some 40,000 interviews with politicians, athletes, entertainers and other newsmakers.
Larry King has had his own TV show called Larry King Live since 1985 … and it is CNN's most watched (and currently longest running) program, with over one million viewers nightly.
So I think this is an interesting video to watch and study. And you can read the transcript on our blog. The interviewer asks Larry King a few questions about his interviewing style. And he also asks him about his suspenders – because he always wears suspenders on the show.
This is the question: How many pairs of suspenders do you actually have?
And you’ll have to watch the video to find the answer.
Last year a 50-year-old man snatched a toupee off the head of a Taiwanese politician. When the wig came off, his mostly bald head was revealed. This week the wig snatcher was sentenced to five months in jail. The judge said that removing the wig intentionally was taking away the man’s freedom to look good.
And that was Stick News for Thursday the 11th of June. Kia ora.
an idea, a belief or an image you have as a result of how you see or understand sth.
For example: There is a general public perception that standards in schools are falling. So that means something like: Most people think that standards in schools are falling.
And in the Larry King interview video the interviewer asks: Do you agree with the perception that sometimes you avoid asking difficult questions?
Which basically means:Some people think that you avoid asking difficult questions. Do you agree with that? And Larry King answers: Don't agree with it.
conversations with sarah
Is unfollow even a word?
Sarah Do you ever unfollow people on Twitter? ツイッターで誰かをアンフォローしたことある?
Ned Is unfollow even a word? アンフォローって単語、あるの?
Sarah Ah … well, I don’t think it’s in dictionaries yet but it’s a new word that means to stop following people on Twitter. まだ辞書に載っていないと思うけど、これは新しい単語でツイッターで誰かのフォローをやめること。
Ned Yeah, I’ve unfollowed a few people. うん、何人かアンフォローした。
Sarah Why?
Ned Because they were writing too many updates. How about you? アップデートし過ぎだったから。 あなたは?
Sarah Yeah, I’ve unfollowed lots of people. Mainly famous people. 私もたくさんアンフォローした。 主に有名人を。
Ned Why?
Sarah Because at first I’m like, oh this person is on Twitter, follow. And then after a while I’m like … mmm I like your music and your acting, but … I don’t really care about what you’re doing every day. はじめは有名人がツイッター始めたから、ただフォローしたけど、しばらくするとこの人の音楽とか演技は好きだけど、普段何をしているかは興味がないから。
I’m Gilbert Cruz with Time.com and I’m here with Larry King host of CNN’s long running Larry King Life and author of the new memoir My Remarkable Journey. Thanks for being with us today.
My pleasure, Gilbert.
What has allowed you to last this long in the job? And do you still enjoy doing it?
I still very much enjoy it and longevity is impossible to explain. I’m doing what I always wanted to do. I never wanted to do anything else but be a broadcaster. I'm talking about age 5. I would listen to the radio and imitate the radio announcers. But I never thought … I never thought I'd be seen worldwide. So all of this is … a dream come true. We almost called the book What Am I Doing Here? I still, I still pinch myself.
Do you agree with the perception that sometimes you avoid asking difficult questions?
Don't agree with it. What I … I'm not there to pin someone to the wall. I try to ask perceptive questions, thoughtful questions that get at an arrival of what that person is, how they are and what they bring forth. If I were to begin an interview with, ah, Nancy Pelosi and say, "Why did you lie about the torture things you learnt?" the last thing I will learn is the truth. Of course, what am I doing? I’m putting them on the defensive, purposely, to make me look good. Nothing to do with them, they’re a prop. At that point, they're a prop. Well, to me, the guest is not a prop.
Are you still learning, ah, how to interview people? Or do you have that down – the technique?
That I think I have down. I think I know how to interview people, I’ve done it for so long. It’s who, what, when, where, why. It’s in what order you put ‘em. What you want is a good interview subject. If you’ve got a subject who is, ah, passionate, who has the ability to explain what they do, very well. Who has a sense of humour, hopefully self-depreciating, and a little bit of a chip on their shoulder. You’ve got those four things, don’t matter, president, plumber, architect, singer … you got those four things, no one will click off.
Are you at all concerned at the popularity of ideologically-charged news programs? Programs where the, ah, host is someone who injects a lot of themselves into … ?
I'm not personally concerned, because I know that all things are cyclical. There’s a wave, it comes in, then it goes out. Hopefully, the good, straight, interview - in-depth, thoughtful, listening to the answer, the guest counts - will always be around. So I’m not a fan of the ideological-based show, right or left, because I don’t learn anything. There's something I learned long ago: I never learned a thing when I was talking. I never learned a thing when I was talking. So these shows in which the host is on 90% of the time and the guests 10%, I don't get it. But, I understand people like it. I wouldn’t do it.
How many pairs of suspenders do you actually have?
Never counted 'em. But my guess would be based on the suspenders in New York and in Washington and, of course, at my home …150. Much more ties. The one thing they have to have, they can't be clip-ons. They have to be buttons, over the buttons. So every pair of pants I buy, jeans, anything I buy - we sew in the suspender buttons. I’ve gotten very used to them. I like the feel, I like the way they wear, I like the, I like the look.
What do you think is the greatest challenge that media faces today?
The greatest challenge media faces today is new media. No one can predict tomorrow. The technology is ahead of the intellect. By that I mean … what I thought was fantastic was television – think of it! You and I can be seen around the world in a, in a minute. There’s satellites - what about satellites, how are we to top satellites? And then guys walk around with little machines and they much ‘em and, and words appear! And you think … So, the new media is … everybody’s a journalist, everybody Twitters and they have websites and they send out … And, and the danger in it, the danger in it is real. When anyone’s a newsman … you get a lot of false stories, overreaction to stories, jumping on stories too quickly, no measuring … And the saddest part of it, is the decline of the newspaper. I love newspapers. In fact, as an aside, I was, ah, having my hair done today and Rupert Murdoch was in the next stall and we were talking. And of course, he loves newspapers and I love newspapers and he said that was … that’s another generation. And it’s sad.
Larry, our last question is from Felicite Osborne from New Rochelle, New York. And she asks: What does life after Larry King Live look like to you?
I don’t know. I don’t know. First, as Milton Berle said, "Retire? To what?" What would I do? I have no idea. I would do something. If I wasn’t at CNN, I’d do something in media. I’d volunteer to work for major league baseball.
That’s nice.
Cause baseball’s my favourite advocation. So I, I would volunteer to do something.
You work so much – you don’t relish, sort of, just, relaxing?
I’m not a relaxer. I’m not … no, no, no. Relax is not in my nomenclature. I, ah,I'm not a good sitter-arounder, if that's a term. It doesn't, it doesn’t suit me.
サラのメモ: By the way ... I'm bored of following famous people on Twitter - but I'd love to follow people who watch tdes. Please tell me your Twitter name in the comments :)