Wallace-Clinton Combat Nets Fox News Big Ratings

WNBC.COM ^

[Sub-Driver]

Wallace-Clinton Combat Nets Fox News Big Ratings

POSTED: 5:48 pm EDT September 25, 2006 UPDATED: 5:51 pm EDT September 25, 2006 NEW YORK -- Political combat pays: "Fox News Sunday" drew its best ratings in nearly three years for this weekend's electric confrontation between former President Clinton and newsman Chris Wallace.

Both men's words were being dissected in the aftermath on Monday, with a Clinton spokesman saying Fox and Wallace had attacked Clinton with "an accusation," not a question.

"I think the interview speaks for itself," Wallace said. "They can spin all the conspiracy theories they want."

The Sunday talk show had its best ratings since the capture of Saddam Hussein in December 2003, according to Nielsen Media Research's measurement of the top media markets. It even outrated the morning's dominant show, "Meet the Press," although the NBC show was displaced from its usual time slot by golf. (Two versions of the interview were the two most-watched clips on YouTube on Monday, totally more than 800,000 views.)

Wallace said Clinton had agreed to a 15-minute interview, half on his philanthropy efforts and half on any issue Fox wanted. As the interview began, Wallace asked about why Clinton is trying to help save lives in developing countries.

Clinton was angered by Wallace's fourth question, about Clinton's efforts to track down Osama bin Laden. Wallace said he asked because it was on viewers' minds, particularly in the wake of ABC's docudrama "The Path to 9/11," which was widely criticized by Clinton officials.

Wallace asked: "I understand that hindsight is always 20/20, but the question is, why didn't you connect the dots and put him out of business?"

That question represented an attack, said Jay Carson, a Clinton spokesman who was backstage watching.

[Sub-Driver]

thanks Bill.

[dfwgator]

The DUmmies heads are really going to explode now.

[Names Ash Housewares]

"an accusation, not a question."

yeah right, watch Cheney with Matthews a week or two ago and see what "accusation" is all about.

Dems are wimps. They can't take it.

[Just mythoughts]

Amazing, a question WHY is constituted as an attack and this turd was president for 8 years, no wonder OBL thought Clintonism was a sign of weaknessssssss. It was and still is old bj proved it alllll by himself.

[Tom Bombadil]

Clinton was angered

Poor baby.

Didn't get softballs and wants to cry.

[ConservativeStatement]

Chris Wallace appeared on Howie Carr's show in Boston today after a hiatus. He handled the Clinton interview professionally even calling the psychotic twit "sir."

[txroadkill]

It even outrated the morning's dominant show, "Meet the Press,"

It must suck to be NBC and having to report on your own network about how your competitor kicked your butt in ratings.

[weegee]

How did the ratings spike when no one knew that Bubba was going to blow a seal on the air?

The hype has all been SINCE the interview aired.

They should've had cameras turned on in the hallways when he threatened to fire his staff afterwards.

[ez]

Every question Tim Russert asks is an accusation. Put some ice on it, bill...

[BunnySlippers]

... and than you, Drudge!

[weegee]

And the left is trying to spin this as a win for Bubba (calling Fox out as right wing).

The "facts" Bubba cited don't bear out his assertions.

Richard Clarke was not demoted, he chose to take that position and did not CHANGE position until AFTER 9/11.

Richard Clarke stated there WAS NO PLAN to go after Al Qaeda to be handed over to the Bush Administration.

The bases Bubba "couldn't" get WERE negotiated by the Bush administration (so much for failings).

Bill Clinton diddled while America burned.

But he sure went after the anti-government right wingers after the OKC bombing. And he had the FBI chasing after non-existent racists who he claimed were burning down churches in the south.

[Ole Okie]

How did the ratings spike when no one knew that Bubba was going to blow a seal on the air?

One of our radio stations that carries Fox News gave its audience a heads up. I recorded it because I was at church during that time, and was glad I did.

[ExcursionGuy84]

"I'd be surprised if the president and his team felt brutalized by the question."

In Mr. Clinton's overly-hyper-egocentric mind....Chris Wallace was probably forcing him to play Russian Roulette....

Mr. CLinton, wake up, get-over it and get out of the public spotlight;
you're not the POTUS anymore and we don't wanna hear from you anymore.

[BallyBill]

That question represented an attack, said Jay Carson, a Clinton spokesman ..

No, Mr, Carson, The first WTC and the Cole were Attacks!!!

[umgud]

How did the ratings spike when no one knew that Bubba was going to blow a seal on the air?

It was prerecorded and Fox used clips to hype the show in advance.

[mkjessup]

In retrospect, I think that what we really saw in that interview of Bill Clinton was a former mediocre, morally flawed but *excellent politician* (say what you will, but Clinton knew how to play the game) slipping, as Clinton was WAY off his game.

Here is how Bill Clinton COULD have answered that question and he would have even had Republicans (and maybe even some Freepers) feeling sympathy for him:

"Chris, that is a hard question for me to deal with, and I'll begin my answer by telling you and every American that when I saw footage of those hijacked airliners crashing into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon on 9-11, (biting lip, tears welling up), all I could think was 'my God, was there something more I could have done?' - Chris, Osama bin Laden is one of the most evil SOBs on the planet, and we did our level best to track him down and take him out, but before 9-11, it would have been politically impossible to go into Afghanistan and Pakistan where al Qaeda was at it's strongest, the last thing we wanted to do was to give the Islamic radicals any sort of justification for declaring jihad against the West, which is exactly what has happened in the last 5 years under the Bush Administration. Now we had Richard Clarke working on the issues of terrorism, and he is a veteran of the Reagan Administration for godsakes, so nobody is going to tell me that we were slacking in our efforts to find and neutralize bin Laden and his organization. Chris, winning this war on terror is not a Republican or a Democratic issue, it is an American issue, and we as Americans need to put aside all the partisan attacks and playing this blame-game and unite as one people to prevail in this conflict or our children are going to inherit a world nobody wants to even imagine. Now I'm not going to feed that sort of partisan 'gotcha' game Chris, so there is your answer, its the only one I'm going to give you, so let's have your next question on the next topic, ok?

THAT would have been Bill Clinton's answer if he had been at the top of his game.

Which demonstrates just how far "the mighty have fallen".

[umgud]

Cocaine.

[skr]

Clinton's not going to like the billing.

[debg]

"...we knew exactly what we were going to do if he did that, as we suspected he would..."

In other words, if Chris asked any question about the war on terror, Clinton would attack.

Clinton thought he had his position sewn up with the stacked 9/11 commission. He was just fine until he saw it start to come apart with "The Path to 911" movie. I'd say it was at that time he decided to go on the attack. I think we'll see more of it.

[reagandemocrat]

Sssooo...

Chris Wallace really did "make his bones" with that Clinton interview?