In an extraordinary gesture of conciliation, David Letterman spent a good chunk of the first half of Monday night’s Late Show apologizing for the jokes that so offended Gov. Sarah Palin, and making jokes at his own expense about the animosity he has attracted over the past week.
Saying once again that his joke about a Palin daughter at Yankee Stadium had been tasteless, Letterman said what many of us had thought: that “I had, honestly, no idea that the 14-year-old girl [Willow] was at the ball game.” “I understand why people are upset,” he said, because by now, it’s “the perception rather than the intent.” In other words, Letterman never intended to be cruel, but that’s how it was perceived. He apologized to “the Governor and her family.”
(Incidentally, Letterman said he came to this realization after listening to a remark about the controversy made by Mark Shields on The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer, possibly the biggest media-mention Shields or Lehrer has received in this century.)
Fascinatingly, what preceded this was an opening monologue that was virtually all about the Palin brouhaha. His opening words were a sarcastic, “I’m David Letterman, good-will ambassador… I got a call from Mom today. She told me she was siding with the governor.” Talking about how Bernie Madoff’s wife said recently she felt “shunned by friends and neighbors,” he added, “Hey, tell me about it.”
As I wrote yesterday, I wish Letterman did not feel the need to apologize or explain himself yet again. Letterman’s bedrock decency has prevailed over what he must know is Palin’s bedrock opportunism in prolonging the controversy. But if this is the way he’s choosing to try and end this messiness, I hope it works.
Now let’s see what happens next. Will Palin accept Letterman’s apology? Also, on Monday, it was reported that a protest has been planned for Tuesday afternoon outside New York’s Ed Sullivan Theater, where Letterman tapes his show. It’s being co-sponsored by radio host John Ziegler, a creepy specimen who once remarked that the phrase “a rational woman” is “an oxymoron.” This is the man to whom Palin gave an interview when first expressing her concerns about the Letterman jokes. You wouldn’t think she’d want a guy like that in her corner.
What do you think? Should this controversy end now?
For more on the Letterman apology:
Letterman apologizes for Palin comment
An open letter to David Letterman re Sarah Palin
Comments (1-30) of 714 Add your comment
Sara Palin deserves what she got and more. she kills innocent animals for kicks and can’t take a joke? when did she became so sensitive wearing those safety glasses? just stay out of New York City if you can’t take the heat.
Yes, by all means protest in front of Letterman’s studio on the day after he apologizes (for a second time). Show America how unforgiving you can be. And be sure to promote you lame Palin documentary and hate filled radio show while you’re at it. Who says you can’t make a buck while pretending to be outraged?
Look, Ziegler is a class A loon and I’m sure he’ll manage to attract some people just as loony to parade around. Will it change anything? Nope. Dave will still be on the air long after the loons have gone back to the nursing home or put their tin foil hats back on.
This flap has never really been about Dave. It’s been about a small bitter segment of the population failing to understand that they lost the election. They’re going to be whining about some perceived injustice well into Obama’s second term.
He shouldn’t have apologized. Palin is a worthless politician and opportunist, grabbing any chance she has to get into the spotlight, even at her daughters expense.
Noone cares about you Sarah Palin, just shut up and go back into the alaskan cave you came from.
1. Letterman should never apologized for a joke.
2. If Palin doesn’t get the joke, it is likely she is really as dim intellectually as many claimed she was.
3. What about commenting on the bank bailouts? The car bailouts? The overspending on Senate and Congress pay and peripheral expenses? The real issues. Of course, a politician would have to have insight and intellect to address these issues which impact us all.
From my house, I can see Palin’s head deep in her butt. A hypocrite like Palin does not have the right to be upset on this one. She has always been an opportunistic woman and this time too its the same.
Letterman had nothing to apologize for.. It was a joke! Just like Palins campain was a joke, we the public got over that sorry excuse for a campain – She needs to get over this.
Get over it Sarah! Geez you won’t let it die because you need all the attention you can get. You’re the one who’s keeping YOUR 14 year old daughter in the news. You’re a disgrace….
Letterman should be fired. His joke was tastless and offensive. Imus was fired for less, there should be no discussion about. this country needs to shape up it’s dialog on national TV, radio and newsprint.
Politicians are fair game for verbal attacks, BUT NOT THEIR CHILDREN!!! If Rush Limbaugh had said anything that was in the slightest bit negative about Obama’s kids, you’d all be calling for his scalp. The sooner you vile, mean spirited, hypocritical morons on the left get that, the sooner we can progress to having more civil political discussions. And even though politicians are fair game, calling a sitting governor and former VP candidate “slutty” is not exactly intellectual political debate. It’s simply classless and misogynist.
Letterman was wrong. Sarah Palin’s anger was reasonable. But this whole thing has been over-blown, probably because we find these people both interesting. People who are upset about it are missing the fact that it is the magnitude of attention that is so nuts. If it bothers them, they need to realize that they have caused this situation by clicking on article links, talking about it and sending in comments.
Letterman need to be removed from the airwaves of this country….just like Imus was for his comments. Why do we let Letterman get by with it?…because he is liberal? He never directs his smart ass “humor” towards liberals, it’s always conservatives he attacks. Palin’s one conservative who’s pushing back and it’s good to see!!!
Kick his ass out!!!!
Previous commentators don’t get it – this was a joke in poor taste picking on a child or at the very least a young woman in a society where most children of public figures are off limits. It was rude, brash, and demeaning to women, sexualizing children etc. So get off your high horse and forget about the election results – that was eons ago. How would you feel it this was made about one of your children. Never saw Chelsea harassed and demeaned in this way – why are Gov. Palin’s children fair targets. Look at your own morals and motivations to believe it is okay to pick on a child – bullies!
Palin and her daughter are in the news always due to a joke.. Pregnant teen joke, campaign joke, Abstinence Tour joke, and now this one.
I guess she needs to thank dave for getting back in news.
You guys imploring Palin “to get over it” make it sound it like she is on the air 24/7 talking about it. She’s not. Nor her husband. They were upset, as would I have been, and its perfectly reasonable and understandable they would comment. I think its pretty shallow to imply, or to outright say they are being “opportunistic” with this. Can’t you all just stop bashing the woman for once? Meanwhile if it were me I would accept Letterman’s apology and move on at this point.
She goes, “Dave, you betcha this is tasteless.” *wink* *wink*
First of all, Dave should have (not just privately, but publicly in his statement) held his writers accountable for turning in that joke for that night’s monologue. Yes, he
ultimately made the call to include it, but the reality is that comedy writers aren’t journalists. They rarely do fact-checking while producing material for these shows-they likely had no clue which one of Palin’s kids was with her in NY; they don’t get into those kind of details. Just the same as when Leno or Letterman joked about that lovesick astronaut, and misspoke about which shuttle she flew on. It goes without saying that any joke about getting “knocked up” would logically have been based on Bristol, the oldest daughter.Is that carelessness on the show’s part? And tasteless? Absolutely. But far from the first time they’ve screwed up.
As for Gov. Palin,she’s well within her right to have been insulted, but
I think she’s run a bit too far with the ball on this;it comes off more as a political move right now.
Palin’s reply to Letterman’s apology is amazingly stupid. She is beyond the pale in her ignorance and self promotion.
But the other daughter did get knocked up. That doesn’t sound like an innocent child.
Dave’s assertion that his attack was intended for an 18 year old female makes his misogynistic remark okay? Imus was fired for an off the cuff remark. Dave’s despicable attack was planned! He’s a ultra-lib politician masquerading as a comedian…Fire him!
Move on and move out of the lime light. We’ve had enough of you hypocritical rantings. You could not keep your minor daughter from getting pregnant or getting married. Your white trash are a disgrace to American values.
Lisa Taylor who thinks Palin “kills animals for kicks”, you’re misinformed, or maybe just uninformed. The reason Alaska Department of Fish and Game has to regulate the population of wolves is because left alone they hunt down herds of caribou and decimate them. In fact they become so spoiled they will seek only the pregnant caribou, who are also the slowest in the herd, and will eat just the softest part of the body, the fetus, leaving the rest of the dead carcass to decay before moving on to the next.
There is NO question that Letterman should be fired when held to the same standard as Imus….and his comments were much worse than Imus.
Palin and her family are white trash from Alaska, she will never be anything other than that, the majority of this country will keep her out of any public office of importance. Gov of Alaska doesn’t count, shameful how she is milking this for all the 15 minutes she can get….beat it.
First of all, Dave should be holding his writers accountable for turning in that joke to begin with. Yes, he ultimately made the call on including it,but they were its source. Having said that though, bear in mind the talk show comedy writers aren’t journalists. I doubt they do very much fact-checking while coming up with material. Likely, they had no clue which daughter was with Palin in NY. And obviously any “knocked up” joke would be a reference to Bristol, the oldest. The monologues are never 100% accurate about anything. Example:When Letterman & Leno joked about the lovesick astronaut, they’d misquote which shuttle she flew on. Again, carelessness on the writer’s part. It’s nothing new. Was the Palin joke tasteless? Absolutely. And the Governor was well within her right to be insulted. But after a certain point, her outrage begins to look more and more like a political move as much as it is being a protective mother.
All I see in this are misinterpretations on everyone’s part.
I don’t care if Letterman’s never said a bad thing about anyone. He went over the line and of course he should apologize.
btw, the chicken crap that he is has never made a joke about Obama. How long did he go after McCain when McCain missed the show. Dirtbag!
I think if you are a celebrity of any sort you can expect to be harrassed by the media. Because let’s face it, there are no decent reporters out there anyways, so this is the best we are going to get. HOWEVER, the media and talk show hosts and the like need to focus on the celebrity and LEAVE THEIR FAMILIES out of it. You know the old saying, you can say whatever you want about me, but if you start making comments about my wife or HEAVEN forbid my CHILDREN, there will be a crowbar heading your way. Don’t MESS with my family.
Dave was overboard with the comment, and he apologized. End of story. Palin is beyond stupid and the Republicans need to acknowledge it and move on. She’s a disgrace to all Republicans.
Somebody please drop a house on this dumber than bush b-itch!
Yes, Palin is a politician, a Govenor of one of our states. The President is a politician also. Make the same “joke” about his daughters and see the reaction. I assure if you think the response is bad for Palin you ain’t seen nothing yet if the remark was made towards the President’s girls.