Hero of the Hudson to Save Journalism, Too
Katie Couric got scooped by a kid! Jega Sanmugam of Dougherty Valley High in San Ramon, Calif. published his sitdown with Flight 1549 miracle pilot Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger before her 60 Minutes interview aired.
Well, okay, Couric was in on it. Turns out Sully made the "suggestion" of granting an interview with a student journalist while negotiating with 60 Minutes. Couric thought it was such a grand idea that she let Sanmugam interview her, too!
Usually broadcast-news interview subjects negotiate for first-class airfare, hotel rooms, photo-licensing fees, Broadway tickets, and so on — but no, Sully insisted on advancing the state of journalism education in America. (We have high hopes for Sanmugam — note the four separate audio recorders on the table in front of him as he interviews Sullenberger.)
This Sully guy is too good to be true. Speaking of Broadway tickets, did you hear that he got a standing ovation just for showing up at South Pacific last week?