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Thursday, September 28, 2006
Studio B-sharp?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Live from Studio B, it’s … a little water music?
Fox News may have snagged a prime location high atop the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce building from which to broadcast three of its programs Thursday: A verdant view of Centennial Olympic Park down below. Great views of the Atlanta cityscape up above (especially if you averted your eyes from that giant billboard on Techwood featuring rival CNN anchor Anderson Cooper’s distinctive snow-capped head). And what sounded like a live orchestra playing along at times.
It wasn’t. It was just the usual Fountain of Rings fanfare that occasionally wafted up from the park during the 3 p.m. live broadcast of “Studio B with Shepard Smith.” The only-in-Atlanta music didn’t interfere with the show; if anything, it lightened the mood a tad during an hour in which Smith continually updated viewers on reported police shootings in two different cities and sat down with Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue for a rather sobering discussion about how much it could cost to provide paper trails for electronic voting machines.
There was some confusion about whether the public could watch Smith do his thing; initial information was that they would be able to, but the rotunda area atop the Chamber building wasn’t set up for spectators. Nonetheless, Fox made arrangements for fans who did show up to come up and watch “Studio B.” That was music to the ears of Becky James, a Tate, Ga., resident, who’d been waiting since noon with her daughter, Melissa Toel.
“We are BIG Fox News fans,” said James, who watched the broadcast and got to meet Smith afterwards. “I like the whole network, because they’re so straightforward. And I’m conservative and so are they.”
Full-Court Charm Press
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Shepard Smith has met the enemy and he is charmed. And capable of being charming under the most stressful circumstances.
The Fox News anchor had a little nosh and schmooze with the Atlanta Press Club Thursday and he seemed grateful to be greeted by applause. Considering the circumstances, and all …
“I’m sort of in enemy territory here,” Smith drawled to a lunchtime audience at the Commerce Club downtown. “People are wearing red, but it’s the wrong red. I’m terrified of Saturday. Please be nice and clean up after yourselves in The Grove. Unlike LSU fans.”
Yep, he was talking football. Specifically, Saturday’s faceoff in Oxford between the undefeated University of Georgia bulldogs and the — well, let’s just say, the NOT undefeated University of Mississippi Rebels (A Holly Springs, Mississippi, native, Smith went to Ole Miss and is still a season ticket holder for football there). He was NOT referencing the fact that he was making this appearance just a couple of blocks from rival CNN’s world headquarter, and that Fox has set up shop today right under CNN’s noses. Smith and Greta Van Susteren are broadcasting three shows live at 3 p.m., 7 p.m. and 10 p.m. from the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce overlooking Centennial Olympic Park.
It’s part of Fox News’ 10th anniversary “Thank You America” tour. And, according to Smith, the occasionally overheated rivalry’s all pretty much in good fun.
“We do a lot of playing with our neighbors across the street here, but the truth is, we’re in this business because CNN created this business,” Smith said, while some “ooh’s” rippled through the room. “We have the utmost respect for them, and I have great friends at CNN and I admire the work they’ve done. But you know, if we sometimes treat it like the football game between Ole Miss and Georgia … When the game begins with a cheer, ‘We’ll swat you like a bug,’ well, you just sometimes keep going.”
From war in Lebanon to blogs, Smith covered a host of other topics in a 20 minute talk, followed by a lively question-and-answer session. The most interesting moment may have come when someone asked him about Sunday’s fiery interview between Fox News’ Chris Wallace and former president Bill Clinton:
“If you read the question, if you take all the hype and spin out, the question, I believe was ‘Why did you not do more to get bin Laden before it happened?’” Smith said. “Bill Clinton said that was a fair question. He said what wasn’t fair was that he hadn’t asked that question of other people.”
Smith continued his thoughtful breakdown of the exchange before finally concluding: “Chris Wallace didn’t ask a bad question, Bill Clinton was coming off a bad week, and that thing spiraled into some FINE television. Was anything accomplished? No.”
And speaking of spirals, the last and obviously toughest question for Smith concerned — you guessed it — football. Got a prediction for Saturday’s game, Shep?
“Well, I ain’t one for prognosticating, but I can see the Rebels have got trouble,” he sighed heavily, brightening only slightly at the thought of Georgia’s inexperienced quarterback corps. “I say, ‘Start that freshman! Start that freshman!’”
