King came to CNN in June 1985, where his show has rarely faltered as the prime weeknight interview show.
And while he was forced to interview a lot of tabloid figures there, King told me he’d be free to book the guests he wanted at his new show.
“That’s the tough thing: Deciding who people want to see. And I’m not the best judge. If it were up to me, I’d do sports four days a week. Because I’m a sports nut. First thing I turn to in the newspapers is sports. I had a wonderful time in New York we got two shows out of it, Matt Kemp and Mattingly. It was great. Going down in the dugout. The Mets and Dodgers. Wonderful.”
He was less enamored with politicians.
“One of the problems with politics, with some exceptions, politicians think about what will they think of this answer. So there’s a cutoff between the brain and the mouth. So when a politician says, ‘I’m glad you asked that,’ you know they’re not glad you asked that. And they’re thinking about what they want to say.
“But then you have people like Barry Goldwater, George McGovern,” he went on “There was no cutoff between here and there and they were the best.
“And Bill Clinton,” he concluded. “Bill Clinton was the best. He’s the best politician.”
At a press event promoting his 50th anniversary in broadcasting in 2007, he said, “My duty, as I see it, is I’m a conduit.
“I ask the best questions I can. I listen to the answers. I try to follow up. And hopefully the audience makes a conclusion. I’m not there to make a conclusion. I’m not a soapbox talk-show host. Never have been. What I think of someone may not be what you think of someone. So what I try to do is present someone in the best light. You know that Edward R. Murrow, if you look at some of his old tapes, never knocked anyone. He just let the case fall by itself.”