by Jess McCuan

No one knows Washington better than Cokie Roberts. She’s covered politics for more than 40 years, first for NPR and then for ABC News, where she was co-host, with Sam Donaldson, of the interview program This Week. Now, in addition to her political commentary on ABC and on NPR’s All Things Considered, the three-time Emmy winner is writing books. Three have focused on women’s history and women in American politics, and she’s hard at work on another. Shockingly, she claims to be a slow reader. “It’s a terrible handicap,” she says. “I have to do an enormous amount of reading to get anywhere.”

Roberts will be the keynote speaker at the Community Foundation of Western North Carolina’s sixth annual Power of the Purse Luncheon on May 24.

Do you read blogs? I don’t read blogs. There’s not enough time in the day. Blogs are completely derivative. Very few blogs are original reporting. It’s somebody’s views of what somebody else has reported.

Are Twitter and Facebook good for journalism? I don’t have a Facebook account, and I certainly don’t Twitter. But I don’t have any objection to them…Generally, my view of Twittering is that it’s rude. Especially when people who should be listening to a speaker are sending out Tweets.

Is there any aspect of your job or daily routine that you find annoying? I don’t have a daily routine. I’m at a stage of my life where I don’t do the things that are annoying. I’ve been there and done that.

Are there any hot topics in Washington right now that you think will change the lives of average American women? The health care bill could change their lives. What’s at stake in the bill is people who don’t have coverage and could get it...If people don’t think that what happens in Washington affects their lives, they’d be wrong.

How do you think Obama has done so far? It’s been a rocky shear. He talks about what he inherited, and that’s true. But he’s been there more than a year. It’s time to move along. Nobody’s going to give him credit anymore for walking into a bad situation. On health care, he lost control of the message. That’s surprising because he was so good at controlling the message during the campaign.

How do you feel political women are covered in the news? The coverage of Sarah Palin and of Hillary was so sexist that a lot of women’s hackles were up—including mine. The coverage was just outrageous. Words were used, questions were asked, ridicule was made that would never happen with a man. A male politician has never been asked—‘Who’s going to take care of the children?’

There have been some controversies surrounding things you’ve said on air. Is there anything in particular that you’ve said that you wish you could take back? Oh, probably all the time. You hear things coming out of your mouth, and you have this cartoon reaction—like pulling the words back, even as you hear yourself say them… I’ve never lied about anything. But you make flip statements that people sometimes take the wrong way. Or take too seriously. Some people’s lack of humor can be devastating. 

For more details on the Community Foundation’s Power of the Purse luncheon, at Asheville’s Crowne Plaza Golf & Tennis Resort on May 24, go to www.cfwnc.org.