i'm interviewing helen thomas later this week

[Adenoid_Hynkel]

for the newest issue of our zine. it's going to be a politics-heavy issue w/ interviews i've done with howard zinn, janeane garofalo, and david rees. (it comes out in december, btw)

this is the last of the bunch i have to do. does anyone have any good ideas on stuff to talk about? i have a rough outline of what i want to do, but any suggestions would be appreciated.

[populistmom]

1. Very cool!

I'd love to read it. Please give us I link after you write it. :)

[Maine-i-acs]

2. Ask her how it feels to be muzzled.

Can she go to a White House press conference anymore?

Can she ask the president whatever she wants without submitting her questions beforehand?

Or are we sliding toward state-owned media ...

[La_Serpiente]

3. Ask her about junior and senior members

of the Bush* Administration. Ask her about undersecretary of state Bolton.

Isn't she a Lebanese immigrant? Ask her about her immigrant experience in America.

Here is a guide about Helen Thomas from the Arab American Instiute, run by James Zogby (Daniel Pipes' diametrical opposite)
http://www.aaiusa.org/PDF/Cas.Broch.(AAIF-V).pdf

OOO...ask her about Daniel Pipes as well.

And ask her about how she feels about the late Edward Said. I am sure she has some special words for him.

[TNDemo]

4. Tell her I still think my idea of a perfect evening

would be dinner and conversation with her, Molly Ivins and Ann Richards. Told her that in an e-mail last year and she said no one would want to according to the e-mails she was getting (around the time the war started). Told her she would ultimately be known for having the guts to ask the hard questions while everyone else froze up.

[Hand]

5. I suspect we'd all like to tell her...

:yourock: :grouphug: :hug: :loveya: :hi: :toast: :party: , etc.

[Pillowbiter]

6. Idunno

at least tell her she has EARNED my respect.

PB

[Maccagirl]

7. Give her a big hug first

from all of us at DU, and then just let her tell the truth.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

8. Ask her if she has any idea why

her colleagues are so spineless.

[OneBlueSky]

9. I know that she's very concerned about . . .

civilian casualties in Iraq, particularly children . . . that might provide an opening for some interesting discussion . . . be sure to tell her that she's something of a hero on DU . . . :)

[WWW]

10. please tell her

that she has a lot of people behind her and respect her experience and insight..and ask her when her most memorable Q/A moment was? Also was she ever totally aghast at an answer and knew it was a lie. Details. And how did she handle it. Also what does she think personally of Bush's charactor?