Controversy Accompanies Couric’s Interview With The Edwardses
By Lindsay Cooper

In Katie Couric’s '60 Minutes' interview with John and Elizabeth Edwards, she asked some loaded questions centering on how Elizabeth Edwards’ cancer would affect Edwards’ presidential campaign.

The interview seemed very well rehearsed as neither of the Edwardses stumbled or hesitated in their answers to Courics’ questions. The interview began with Couric, who appeared to express a somewhat concerned expression asking Elizabeth Edwards how she was doing. Elizabeth Edwards’ glittering blue eyes, rosy cheeks, and pseudo smile was evident as she answered Couric’s questions about her cancer in the most optimistic manner. Her husband similarly answered questions with an utmost positive aura, which seemed somewhat surreal.

As others have expressed, there was an ironic twist that subtly presented itself through the interview. John Edwards claimed he was greatly concerned with his wife’s illness but understood the responsibility of running for presidency, which meant focus and clarity when hard judgments have to be made. This discrepancy allows the viewer to see that the real question about his wife’s illness standing in the way of his campaign has not really been answered. It was also ironic that Couric’s face appeared to soften when interviewing the Edwardses, but she refrained from expressing heartfelt emotion and focused on objective questions that dealt with the public’s interest.

There did appear to be a progression throughout the interview in which Couric went from asking basic questions about Elizabeth Edwards’ health to more complex ones, such as questioning John Edwards’certainty in the presidential race if her condition worsened. However, the Edwardses responded to every question in a consistent and well thought-out manner. Couric, on the other hand, did appear to change the tone in which she asked her final questions, particularly in stating to John Edwards that the president at a dangerous time like this cannot be concerned with such distractions. It seemed as if there was another, perhaps more personal intention behind such a question.