How Letterman could lose (or, is yellow journalism's 15 minutes up yet?)

[madmusic]

Source: The Hollywood Reporter

Coming clean won't matter if dirty details emerge

By Andrew Wallenstein

Oct 3, 2009, 01:45 PM ET

At the close of David Letterman's stunning on-air disclosure Thursday, the host seemed set to put the whole sordid affair behind him. After a 10-minute explanation of an extortion plot intended to expose his sexual liaisons with female staffers, he concluded, "I don't plan to say much more about this on this particular topic."

But if Letterman thinks he's had the last word, rest assured this controversy is far from over.

Read more: http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/news/e3i505f5fdeedc76b427c79c07ad496b7f9

---

Anyone else getting tired of yellow journalism? Time to boycott it yet?

[Dennis Donovan]

1. The worst of it is out...

He had sex with some of his female employees, and they were of legal age. Unless one of them was a goat, I can't see where this is going to escalate.:shrug:

[Auggie]

2. You're right. People will forget about this with the next sex scandal.

[Mz Pip]

4. It can escalate

if one of them decides to sue him for sexual harrassment. There will lawyers lined up around the block to take that case with Letterman's deep pockets.

[aquart]

9. Yet so far it hasn't occurred to them.

Being called up and politely asked for a date doesn't sound like "harassment" to me. And I am familiar with what it actually is.

[Captain Hilts]

21. It's really weird in the workplace. Don't get your honey where you get your money. nt

[UTUSN]

3. Along the lines of this article, what if LENO turns out to be the decent dude after all?

LENO's first snipe after the story broke was prideful: "If you (audience) came to have sex with a talkshow host, you're IN THE WRONG STUDIO!1"

All these years, I've supported Dave over LENO because (forget that comedians hit ALL sides) Dave's digs at Rethug have seemed sharper and more frequent than his digs at Dems, and that LENO has seemed to go out of his way to include the likes of Ahhhnuld, Dennis MILLER, and other Rethugs.

But in the end, if LENO turns out to be the "clean" dude ...?

If all of Dave's affairs are ADULT, withOUT any sexual harrassment or extreme age gap and NOT with interns, well that's that.

Where the article speculated about possible venues for a "confession" interview---BahBwah WAHWAH, 60 Minutes, Larry KING--- I'm thinking, the most bizarre would be LENO!1 The thing he trademarked with Hugh GRANT, and most recently with Kanye WEST!1

Yeah, I know, THAT's not going to happen!1

[itsrobert]

5. Adults?

What's all this speculating about his sex partners not being adults? What sick bastards are thinking this?

[UTUSN]

11. There are posts (carelessly, gratuitously?) using the word "interns."

I haven't seen ANY news reports saying that "interns" were involved, so where did the GD poster get THAT word?!1


I am aware that age 18 is the threshold of "adulthood," but if the persons involved are WAY that young, it still wouldn't look that good. PALINites would LEAP to put a whole new spin on his PALIN's-daughter joke.

I used the word "adults" withOUT the companion adjective "consenting" since the consenting would be included in the adulthood.

[marshall]

18. Check out TMZ

Or wait, it'll make its way to the rest of the media outlets. Last and not least it will be reported by the networks.

Maybe it's commonplace now? It used to be frowned on.

[tibbiit]

8. why do people keep calling them affairs?

i understood this all was prior to the birth of the child? before 2003. He didnt get married until feb 2009.
Isnt that called dating when a single man and woman have sex?
tib

[UTUSN]

12. Not according to Webster's. Has nothing to do with marriage or children.

It sounds more like "fling." (or "liaison")


****************QUOTE*************


http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/affair

3also af·faire a : a romantic or passionate attachment typically of limited duration : liaison 2b b : a matter occasioning public anxiety, controversy, or scandal

************UNQUOTE****************

[Captain Hilts]

19. He's been "with" his current wife for 20 years. I guess he was 'with' a lot of other women too. nt

[madmusic]

10. The right to privacy was conceived as a reaction to yellow journalism

In 1890, Samuel Warren and Louis Brandeis published "The Right to Privacy,"<16> considered the most influential law review article of all time, as a critical response to sensational forms of journalism, which they saw as an unprecedented threat to individual privacy. The article is widely considered to have led to the recognition of new common law privacy rights of action.

Source: wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yellow_journalism">yellow journalism page.

Abortion, too, is founded on the right to privacy. Maybe support for abortion falls in correlation with the the fall of the right to privacy.

[davidpdx]

15. Yahoo News is VERY guilty of yellow journalism

They publish all kinds of shit that has NOTHING to do with the news. Drives me crazy

[DatManFromNawlins]

14. Leno is a decent guy who seems to have good morals

Most comedians are extremely cynical people who reach down deep into the dark recesses of their minds to come up with their material. Leno seems to be an exception who is genuinely happy with his life.

Also, remember that their jobs are to entertain and draw ratings, not to make political statements. Jay has probably been more successful than Letterman because he doesn't go out of his way to alienate a segment of the audience.

[mockmonkey]

16. I always thought

that Letterman was funnier on Late Night because he was unhappy with his treatment from GE or if he thought the show was going badly.

The Late Show isn't as funny because he is happier or at least appears happier. A grumpy Letterman was a funny Letterman.

I find Leno to be uninteresting and a snore because he doesn't want to alienate anyone.

[Wizard777]

6. Dave is the most powerful man in show business.

If he says it's over. It's over.

[sandnsea]

7. Letterman fucks around. Everybody knew that

I can't understand why anybody thought it was a secret.

[Berry Cool]

13. Not everyone knew he fucked people who worked for him.

Any way you slice it, that's dirty pool in the workplace. I like him and he's made me laugh many a time over the years, but dammit, that was D-U-M-B DUMB.

[Captain Hilts]

20. I think I read it in RollingStone many years back. It explained why he was never part

of the NY social scene.

[JeanGrey]

17. No he is not! Not even close. LOL