Shep v. Anderson, courtesy of tvnewser.com

[Muffstser]

For some reason, Bill Murray's version of "Star Wars" was running through my head as I read this.

Aftermath: The Late Show With David Letterman Does Not Matter
Anderson Cooper is looking at dead bodies in New Orleans. Shep Smith spent a week on an interstate above the flooding. So who cares which anchor appeared on The Late Show with David Letterman on Monday night?

Apparently CNN does. Their P.R. department has been calling outlets like Page Six and Rush & Molloy today, pointing out that Cooper could have appeared with Letterman, but stayed in New Orleans instead. They're suggesting that Smith had different priorities, but that's apparently wrong.

"Shep had to be convinced to do Letterman," a Fox News insider says. "Friday morning, he was scheduled to come back on Sunday. Things with Letterman were set up Friday afternoon."

More importantly, why is this being discussed at all? Aren't there more important things going on in the world? Promote the passion of your journalists and the quality of your coverage, not a P.R. hit on a late-night talk show...