CHAPTER SIXTEEN:
MAMA KNOWS BEST! DAVE'S MOM AT THE OLYMPICS
by: Lauren B
edited by: Susan
The Olympics are a GREAT BIG DEAL to the
television industry. Millions and Billions of dollars are
to be made on ads surrounding this event. With this in
mind, most of the television industries send their top
Newscasters to The Olympics. The Senior Reporters
are sent time and time again, in the hopes that the
ratings will soar.
It is IRONIC that David Letterman consistently gets the
highest ratings in television when he covers The
Olympics. It is ironic, because he breaks all of the
rules while doing it! While the industries top names
cover The Olympics: Dan Rather, Ted Koppel, the
Walter's etc. in hopes of capturing ratings and money,
Dave sends endearing people to get a real life view of The
Olympics.
Most of the News Media are busy checking their facts,
spending endless hours worrying that they have them
accurate. Dave, on the other hand, sends people who could
care less about facts. His reporters do in-depth
interviews on what the sandwich venues are serving. They
poke fun at The Olympics (this year in Salt Lake
City, Utah, Stephanie did an in-depth interview on what
type of pick up lines newly crowned gold medalists would
use on dates; NOTING THAT THEY ARE HOT DATE MATERIAL NOW
THAT THEY HAVE A GOLD MEDAL) The reporters that Dave
sends do not care about facts! But this is the whole idea
of it. This is where all of the humor lies. They would
rather chat and make friends than gather boring mundane
facts. They would rather interact and have fun with
Dave's television audience. His reporters charm the world
with their warmth and humor. DAVE'S MOM, Dorothy fits
into this category well. The "Late Show with David
Letterman" makes a celebration out of The
Olympics. To Dave , The Olympics are exciting,
fun, and loaded with comedy material. At The 1994
Winter Olympics, in Lillehammer, Norway, MAMA KNOWS
BEST and has one of the most successful Olympics
Coverage of The 1994 Olympics. Dave's Mom has
set the television industry on fire!
On February 14, 1994, MOM pulled in a WHOPPING 8.8 rating
as The Late Show Olympics Reporter. This was the
night that she interviewed Hillary Clinton. The
advertising dollars were hitting the roof! It was the top
rated Late Night Television Talk show rating! The humor
is inbred into the situation. Dave finds a humorous
situation and flies with it! This is David Letterman's
edge! The idea of one's mother covering The Olympics
is funny in itself. Dave must have known this when he
sent her. People tuned in to see if he would really do
it, and then to see just what it would be like if they
sent their Mom to The Olympics. If you like to
read what David Letterman had to say about his mother's
appearance on The Olympics, please visit Kimberly's
David Letterman Page at:
http://users.abac.com/ksitterley/
I have to hand it to you Dave, this is utter brilliance.
(Speaking of brilliance, there have been many polls and
studies taken over the years regarding the type of
audience that, "The Late Show" attracts. You
will be happy to know that most Dave watcher's are
considered highly intellectual! Young women, men, kids,
older women (with Mom), musicians and college kids (like
me) are all among the Dave watchers.
No one knows if it was Mom's charm or the milk and
cookies she brought to The Olympics that made her
visit so enjoyable to the public! What we do know is that
CBS was quite pleased with the ratings, Dave's mom, and
that David Letterman has scored again
Hillary Clinton was interviewed by the Late Show
once again, in January 2,000. Although it was not an
Olympics event, the show received an 8.0 rating.
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