[originaltext]Interviewer: Newspapers seem sort of impersonal... Donahue: U

Interviewer: Newspapers seem sort of impersonal...
Donahue:    Uh-hmm...
Interviewer: ...but radio and TV -- there are personalities involved, Isn’t there...uh...a lot more
    possibility that--since there are personalities involved--that it will have a greater
    impact on people...people’s reactions...?
Donahue:    Well, I think you have to first start with the understanding...uh...that no person is un--
    objective. We’re all striving to be objective, but we have our own prejudice. It’s built in.
    And so  uh...even the person who writes the story in the newspaper...
Interviewer: Right...
Donahue:    ... less that bias come through in his pen. Of course, when we are personally on camera,
    ...uh... we’re trying to stick pretty closely to a script...
Interviewer: Uh-hmm...
Donahue:    ... that we have already written.
Interviewer: Uhm...
Donahue:    But sometimes, perhaps in an ad lib  uh-although we try to avoid as much of that as
    possible--some of our...our prejudice or bias will show, even though we’re...we strive
    not to let it show.
Interviewer: Uh...but when people read a newspaper article, it’s kind of cold.
Donahue:    Uh-huh...
Interviewer: There’s no voice inflections and...
Donahue:    Yes.
Interviewer: ... feeling in the thing ...
Donahue:    Right, ... that’s true.
Interviewer: It could be...it could be a real exciting story, ... and all you can do is put exclamation
    marks. But when you ...
Donahue:    I see what you’re saying.
Interviewer: ... see a person that...
Donahue:    The raised eyebrows, or the...
Interviewer: Yeah. Things come through...Isn’t there a...
Donahue:    ...question of sharpness...
Interviewer: ... a real  uh... 1 started to say, danger  that the particular biases of uh...a person can
    come through more readily?
Donahue:    I think there is a--I think there is a danger. I think it’s something you have to guard
    against...
Interviewer: Uh-huh...
Donahue:    It would be wrong for that to happen. But, yes, I think what you’re saying is true--that
    in trying to interpret the words that are on the script  uh...I might.An my voice or in
    my...uh...expression show some type of reaction to it. Uh...probably, would be more of a
    reaction than it would of an interpretation--although the voice...
Interviewer: Uh-hmm...
Donahue:    ...uh... implies an interpretation when you read any group of words... Interviewer: Right...
Donahue:    ...any sentences--you imply some interpretation. I guess the idea is to make that
    sentence not so bland, but so--leave out adjectives, leave out adverbs...
Interviewer: Uh-huh...
Donahue:    ... so that.., uh...you deal just with nouns and verbs, and in that way, you...uh.., you keep
    it as straight as you possibly can...
Interviewer: Right. How do you see yourself, ...uh... primarily--other than reporting the news?
    Uh...are you an entertainers?
Donahue:    No. No, I don’t think I’m an entertainer. I think, perhaps, the sportsman might be an
    entertainer of sort--although he has a journalistic function too. I see myself as a public
    servant. Uh...the same as...a policeman or a mayor might be...
Interviewer: Uh-uhm...
Donahue:    ...providing information to people that they need in their lives to...to live their life, to
    make decisions and so forth.
Interviewer" But you are conscious, of course, ...when you go before the cameras that...that you’re in
    a situation...
Donahue:    Right...
Interviewer: ...uh...where...where--There must be people that...that...are viewing you...
Donahue:    Oh, sure...
Interviewer: ...you, ... people as ... uh... someone...
Donahue:    Because of your visibility, you become a...a...somewhat of a celebrity in that sense,
    and...uh...I don’t know--I try to play that down, so that doesn’t become a...uh...a thing
    with me.
Interviewer: Uh-uhm...
Donahue:    Because I think that’s probably the biggest problem in our profession--the biggest
    temptation is to get a big head. And while you need confidence in order to do your
    job --it’s a... it’s high-pressure job, so you need confidence--you get too much of that
    confidence, and that begins to come across the tube...
Interviewer: Right...
Donahue:    ...as you’re kind of a know-it-all, or...uh--you think yourself more important than you
    really should be. And I think that would be dealt with by the viewer. After a while,
    they’ll just turn you off. They’ll say, "I don’t want to watch that cocky so-and-so
    anymore... !"
Interviewer: Uh-huh.