:roll: In conversation, interrupting someone midsentence is rude. Period. It may be that the person gracefully handles it (someone mentioned Tony Blair) or are a shitbird about it (Bush’s staff’s complaints to the Irish embassy, etc) but two wrongs don’t make a right duder. This has nothing to do with politics or canned responses. Yeesh.
Bollocks. If someone dodges a question you’re well within your rights (read: you’re not being rude) if you cut them off and try to bring them back to the given question. Ditto for someone pointlessly rambling. I don’t know if that was the case in the Bush interview, but to claim that interrupting someone is always rude is rather silly.
:roll: In conversation, interrupting someone midsentence is rude. Period. It may be that the person gracefully handles it (someone mentioned Tony Blair) or are a shitbird about it (Bush’s staff’s complaints to the Irish embassy, etc) but two wrongs don’t make a right duder. This has nothing to do with politics or canned responses. Yeesh.[/quote]
A reporter interviewing someone is NOT a conversation. It is an interview, and any reporter worth her salt is well within her rights to ask follow-up questions.
So are we saying the only media personality left who isn’t an asshat is Lester Holt during a presidential primary debate?
Agreed, but in my opinion it is still rude to interrupt the speaker, follow up question or not.
Agreed, but in my opinion it is still rude to interrupt the speaker, follow up question or not.[/quote]
But it’s not rude interrupting someone who’s going on a tangent or who’s ignoring your questions.
It’s rude to interrupt the speaker, and rude to go off on a tangent and/or ignoring the question. The prim and proper response is to let the speaker finish, and ask the same damn question or rephrase it to make it harder to dodge. They’re both being rude, however I expect my leader to act civilly, not because the interviewer is being civil, but because my leader ought to be civil.
How on earth is it rude for an interviewer to interrupt a subject when they’re being fed a line of horseshit?
But bush would never dodge an answer, I saw the his press conference, he answered every question, and no question had to be asked twice, or even a third time. Nope.
Chet
It is rude to interrupt the subject, however, it may be necessary and/or appropriate to be rude.
For Christ’s sake, shut the fuck up.
Agreed, but in my opinion it is still rude to interrupt the speaker, follow up question or not.[/quote]
It’s also rude (not to mention disingenuous) to duck the question – but that’s never stopped anyone in politics.
No! You shut up! You shut up!
I’d like to further point out that telling someone about the proper rules of etiquette and telling somone else to “shut the fuck up” in the same post puts you in a class by yourself.
Well, Bush isn’t really used to answering tough questions and having to improvise… at least he’s not very good at it. He’s been very good at sticking to his script, so a proper reporter asking questions and expecting an answer instead of just letting him ramble on would anger him and his minders.
On the other hand - it’s a balance act. You’re interviewing a President (THE President). You need to treat him with respect, but you’re also on very limited time and want real answers, not just scripted soundbites. Tough call.
But I do think it speaks volumes about the US democracy, that the place to find the entire transcript is the official White House website.
Yes, yes, I knew I’d get flamed for that, perhaps I should have included an eye roll…
But tell me, do you find Chet endless sarcasm, baiting, and personal attacks funny, insightful, or as advancing the discussion in any meaningful way?
It’s just another foreign leader to the interviewer, you know.
Has Bush been interviewed like this before? Personally, I’d have liked to see him on BBC World’s Hardtalk, which was the best interview program I knew of back when I still had regular access to it. Now I get CNN and Larry King Live. :(
Did you know that the phrase Chet’s endless sarcasm, baiting, and personal attacks is a legal trademark of the QT3 forums?
They don’t always advance the discussion, but they’re often funny and insightful. I’m a fan of Chet’s writing, and I enjoy what he brings to these forums.
No it’s not.
And even if it is, leaders of foreign countries do deserve some respect - and by balance act I mean, that you want your questions answered. You want to ask the tough questions, but not to anger the guy so much he just clams up or walks out.
I agree on Hardtalk. I’d love to see Tim Sebastian spend a hour with Bush (he totally wiped out our foreign minister, which was shown repeatedly on national - Danish - television ,-) - but his minders would never let that happen. Just as the complaint to the embassy shows, that they’re not really to keen on that whole free press thingy.
When was the last time Chet was funny or insightful?
No fucking chance a conservative version gets the leeway Chet gets from the forum. He’s just an asshat, but you guys give him a free pass on it.
Well, he does own the place.
A touch! A definite touch!