Wow. I ‘almost’ feel sorry for the guy.
He’s getting clowned by Oprah. She has sound bites of people tearing into him. Guests are on the show saying why this is so wrong.
Did they tell him that Oprah was going to bushwhack him?
Best pile-on I’ve seen in a long time.
Good.
He deserves it.
Wasn’t her first reaction that it didn’t matter if it was true or not, because it was so gosh-darned inspiring anyway? Seems a bit unfair.
What’s this all about, now?
Gee, for some reason my browser wont show the link in the OP. I know it MUST be in there.
I’m sure he knew what was coming - like the woman from the publishing company, he didn’t admit much of anything in the portion of the show I saw. I’m not close to feeling sorry for him, especially since he still downplayed it as much as he could. He may even feel bad about what he did, though I doubt it, but he’s still rich and getting richer from the books. He’s crying all the way to the bank if he’s crying at all.
I’ve never seen Oprah so angry before (i bet Jonathan Franzen is chuckling now). Yes, he lied, but he’s no JT Leroy (ie a carefully orchestrated con perpetrated by a group of people), or Stephen Glass, Jayson Blair, Janet Cooke, or George W. Bush.
I don’t sympathize with him (especially since he’s half-apologizing all the way to the bank), and he obviously has problems- perhaps drug/alcohol related, but I can’t help but feel this is more about Oprah saving face than his scandalous behaviour. And she prattled on about how the publishers didn’t check the veracity of his story (which they should have, only I expect identities to be almagamated, tweaked, etc. in a memoir), but didn’t red flags go up before the first show aired (though she said on today’s show that they were only contacted eight days after the airing of the first show)?
Sorry for the hijack, but I just happened to check out Frey’s mug shot on the Smoking Gun and have to ask - what the hell is wrong with his face?? Does he have measles, or the single-worst case of acne ever? Does he explain that in his book?
Chicken pox, see the end of the paragraph at the top…
If you’d read the webiste from the link you posted, you would’ve read that he had the chicken pox.
He had chicken pox.
Which I believe is one of the bit of evidence now being used against him; he claims this was (another one of his many) horrible prison ordeal, they say they released him pretty quickly because…he had chicken pox.
I missed the first part of the show. Did Oprah explain her turn-around from what she said on Larry King?
So the publisher is waiting to print another edition until Frey (or someone) writes a disclaimer? Who on earth would want to buy his book now?
Plus, the guy came off like a dolt. He couldn’t even put a spin on it, like “I was so drugged up, I couldn’t remember.” Would you sit down next to this guy at a bar and think he could write a grocery list, let alone a best-selling book?
I thought it was disingenous of Oprah to rag on Nan Talese for believing the book (Oprah called it “fantastical” and “unbelievable”) but Oprah had no problem believing it and pushing it on her book club. Maybe the onus isn’t all on the publisher.
Exactly! Thank you.
That’s exactly what Nan should have said, but you know her boss had a meeting with her and told her to kiss as much Oprah ass as possible
Not that I can remember. She just apologized for it throughout her own show (perhaps trying to set an example for Frey).
After a look at the NY Times bestseller list (and a ride on the NY subway), plen-ty of people, it seems.
[/QUOTE]
I’m no fan of Oprah or Frey, and have no stake in this. However, I did catch her on Larry King, when she called in and spoke to Frey and his mother, and she kept saying her main concern was for the people who were inspired by this book who felt disillusioned by it’s falsities (not her words, mine; trying to more or less sum it up). I noticed, and pointed out to Mr. Stasaeon, that every time Larry King brought up something about respecting Frey or how she felt about Frey, she kept skirting it, not answering directly, and talking about the people who were inspired by this book, and urging them to continue feeling inspired and not let down. She wouldn’t say how she felt toward Frey one way or another.
However, when it went to a commercial, I changed the channel. Did she actually praise him later on? Because from what I saw, she kept dodging ever saying how she felt about Frey.
Just curious.
From news accounts I’ve read, she’s been inundated with criticism from her fans. I think her behavior now is CYA re her audience, and frankly I think less of her for it; had her fans not rebelled, I doubt that she’d have said anything more about it.
Does the list count sales to bookstores or sales to individuals? I can understand bookstores and libraries stocking up on Oprah’s books. But you’ve seen people reading it, even now? ::shaking head::
Even if the book hadn’t been exposed as a lie, after watching Frey and listening to him try to explain himself – well, it was the worst performance by an author since Elizabeth Kostova appeared on that Dracula special awhile back.
Authors should be articulate in person as well as on the page, and most of them (that I’ve seen) come off as interesting people.
I don’t think it was so much fans rebelling as fans being likely to stampede out the door that got her attention. Oprah has devoted a lot of time to providing diet and health advice, relationship advice, book advice, and advice in general. If she backs a book after the author is proven a liar, then she doesn’t care about accuracy. If she doesn’t care about accuracy, why listen to anything she says, or anything said on her show or in her magazine? Repudiating Frey at this point is a matter of saving her professional hide, not just covering her embarrassment.
As for inviting Frey back on her show to nail him, it’s only fair. First, he deserves it. Second, she helped puff him up, so it’s right she should now help pop his balloon.
From what I read, Oprah received a lot of e-mail complaining that she stood by Frey on Larry King and only then did a turn around, which says to me it’s really all about Oprah again. If she doesn’t have the courage of her convictions then she shouldn’t be doling out so much advice.
So is there a transcript of the show? I’d like to see what I missed. I didn’t get to hear her supporting him at all, and had left off with the impression that she was not very pleased with him. I missed something, somewhere.