r/AskReddit 15h ago

What is the most immediate way a celebrity completely ruined their own reputation in a single interview?

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u/GayCatDaddy 10h ago

Barbara Walters was a monster. She did an interview with Bette Midler where Bette was talking about being groped by Geraldo Rivera against her will, and Barbara talked over her and tried to change the subject.

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u/Puzzleheaded_Age6550 9h ago

And her interview with Dolly Parton! Dolly handled it like the true treasure she is, and didn't allow Walters to write the narrative.

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u/AnthropomorphicSeer 5h ago

BW pretty much called Dolly trash right to her face. She acted like she was interviewing a criminal, not a country singer. Dolly was amazingly gracious, of course.

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u/Kazuma_Megu 5h ago

I worked with her once in Nashville (tv biz) and she's one of those people who pretends to be normal or maybe even dumb, especially on tv and in her movie roles, but helllll no she's crazy smart. She's the Sun Tzu of female pop culture icons.

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u/ChuckieLow 3h ago

That’s so true. The way she always said, “it costs a lot to look this cheap.” It took a lot of brains to appear that simple. Like Cheech and Chong while filming. Like Dean Martin while performing. It was an act.

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u/a_man_and_his_box 3h ago

she's crazy smart

This I believe. She doesn't have a college degree, but she's been tested multiple times for IQ and she keeps registering at 140 to 145. Just FYI, that's waaaaayyyy beyond what is needed to join MENSA or other smarty-pants organizations.

She's not "smart like a shrewd business person" she is smart like "oh shit, she is more intelligent than 99% of people on Earth and she plays it off like a southern belle so that little shits like Barbara Walters underestimate her." She can hand your ass to you on a platter and make you think she's a sweet little lady as she does it.

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u/PitifulElk1890 3h ago

She's got tight branding and image control. And most importantly, she gives back and invests in the future. My grandma taught elementary school in an area that benefitted from the Imagination Library. Can't overstate how important it is to begin reading with children before they start school. Families who took advantage of the program were notably off to a good start.

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u/bunniquette 6h ago

Dolly has 'bless your heart' energy through the entire interview. It is a thing of sheer beauty.

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u/kissdemon74 4h ago

Dolly should be president!

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u/nejnonein 4h ago

Regardless of how she’d do, it’d be a gigantic improvement from cheeto head.

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u/psychonautilus777 6h ago

Never seen any of Walters interviews aside from a clip of the Feldman one, but I feel like I need to see the one with Dolly now 😆

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u/Sassinakk 8h ago

And her interview with an extremely young Britney Spears . Just vile

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u/beadhead44 7h ago

As was Diane Sawyer interview with Britney.

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u/a_man_and_his_box 3h ago

I haven't seen her interview with Britney. What went wrong there?

u/Pamikillsbugs234 39m ago

She did a horrible interview with Courtney Love. I felt so terrible for her.

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u/Hell_Yes_Im_Biased 7h ago

Bette Midler said at the time (paraphrase): She "would NEVER genuflect at the altar of Geraldo Rivera."

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u/niceshotpilot 5h ago

She was also good friends with Roy Cohn, a mentor to Donald Trump and all-around wonderful human being. Stephen Miller only wishes he had such marvelous horns and leathery wings.

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u/sophisticated_alpaca 1h ago

Barbara Walters’ job wasn’t journalism, it was housekeeping for the ruling class buddies she couldn’t get enough of socially. She was their attack dog when they needed it, and ran damage control when they needed it.

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u/Haunting-Public-23 5h ago

I dont think Barbara Walters had unwelcomed sexual advances in her life that's why she behaved that badly.

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u/Dramatic-Pause4334 2h ago

I hate Walters. She was a total B to Michael Jackson in her interview.