Brian Williams had a 20-minute sit down interview with Barack Obama today and the entire thing is available online.

I have jumped onto the Obama train already - about a month ago - but this is an impressive interview to learn a little bit more about our next President.

Exclusive catch to Blogosphere (media matters has not reported on it yet)

If anyone caught the NBC Nighlty News last night it was obvious that the network was doing everything possible to not report on John Edwards strong showing.  I cannot find a clip on the quote however when I played back the show and Brian Williams is paraphrased as follows:

"Let us not forget John Edwards stong showing,  He finished second BEHIND CLINTON."

Behind Clinton?

What was even more interesting, Brian Williams appeared to be reading off a scipt on his desk when he reported it.  Even if it was an error, is Williams competent enough to read the script, know enough about the election outcome where he could self correct his own quote?

I have a question for Brian Williams and NBC Nightly News?

Omitted this time has been "Extremely Annoying," and here's why: For the first time in a long time I was not Extremely Annoyed by Brian Williams and NBC Nightly News.

Because, after 73 newscasts without having aired a full report out of New Orleans, Brian Williams finally aired a piece entitled

New Orleans Blues

It was about time Williams aired such a piece.

More below the fold....

Due to having been busy diarying more important matters, I haven't written any Brian Williams diaries lately, but that doesn't mean he and NBC Nightly News haven't been Extremely Annoying in the past couple of weeks.

First of all, celebrity-happy NBC Nightly News--which about two months ago aired a full report on Ellen DeGeneres crying over a dog and devoted close to a week's worth of reports to the scandal at Oprah's South Africa girls' school, hasn't aired anything about Brad Pitt lately. Even though Pitt made a big announcement on Monday. More below the fold....

Normally, I don't post this kind of diary twice in a row, but I'm Extremely Annoyed! I'm asking WTF? because there were three possible lede stories for NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams, owned and operated by GE, the world's largest defense contractor. Any, and all, of these three are about real issues affecting real people. Also, last night's newscast is Williams' 53rd since the last one in which he aired a full report out of New Orleans.

But back to the lede--none of those three (which I'll go into detail on below the fold) was the lede last night. Instead, Brian Williams' lede was the crap about Barry Bonds being indicted. Again I ask, WTF? Why was this so important it had to be the lede? Who the hell cares? If I wanted to see dreck about sports and jocks, I'd watch ESPN.

I'm saying Hmm....because last night Brian Williams, owned and operated by GE, the world's largest defense contractor, aired an investigative report on what a waste to the taxpayers FEMA trailer parks have gotten to be. This report by Lisa Myers was on how some FEMA trailers cost $229,000, which would buy a big, beautiful home in the area where I live, and details how

Over a 7-month period, investigators found $30 million in improper payments for trailer maintenance alone.

However, this report, true to the fact that NBC's New Orleans bureau has been closed, was actually out of Washington and the film had been shot at a trailer park in Mississippi. Maybe that's better than no post-Katrina coverage at all--but since it wasn't out of New Orleans, I'm saying Hmm...

It's easy to imagine the behind the scenes planning that went into that report, with some assignment editor saying, "O.K., cover FEMA's waste--but out of Mississippi. New Orleans doesn't exist." So last night's was the 52nd "Nightly" newscast that didn't air anything out of New Orleans.

It's been a while since I've posted one of these lists--I've had too many more important things on my mind to diary about these days. But that doesn't mean I haven't been Extremely Annoyed by certain people and organizations who either have been in the news these days, or have been out of it, but have popped into my mind--whose wacky, hateful, mean-spirited, stupid, insensitive, media- or political-whorish, and otherwise perfidious acts have made them extremely well-qualified to be on my fourth list of Extremely Annoying People. So, here's to another rogues' gallery!

NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams has aired 46 newscasts since its last full report out of New Orleans.

That was on Katrina's 2nd-year anniversary. And this news blackout when New Orleans needs all the attention and help she can get is Extremely Annoying. So here's my first installment of a semi-regular series. In each, I will be bringing up at least one substantive news story out of or about New Orleans or elsewhere in the Great Britain-plus-sized area devastated by Katrina and Rita, that in spite of its importance has not been covered on NBC Nightly News.

Then I'll cover at least one example of a fluff piece, celebrity crap, or other "news lite" that NBC Nightly News found the time to cover instead. Because in order to keep New Orleans and other post-Katrina news off its newscasts, they seem to be scraping the bottom of the barrel, resorting to tabloid journalism.

Well, it couldn't happen to a nicer guy--not only being on this list but being in the title!

An excellent theme song for most any newscast or talk show anymore could be Don Henley's "Dirty Laundry." To wit:

"We all know that crap is king,
We need dirty laundry...."

When Fox News first aired back in 1997, little did we news junkies know that 10 years later other newscasts and cable channels would be trying to out-Fox Fox.