FNC’s Bill Hemmer sits down with the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s Patricia Sheridan for her “Breakfast With…” column.
So when you first started out, was your goal to be Tom Brokaw?
Hemmer: [Laughing.] My goal? Way long ago I would have been happy to be a disc jockey at a rock ‘n’ roll station. But times change and people evolve. My ambition has always been the news angle. Personally, look, I think opinion news in the cable world is enormously influential, and it’s been hugely successful for a lot of people. Based on their viewership, the evidence is clear. But that’s not my game. I’d rather moderate the debate than lead it. [Laughing.] I don’t think I’m very good at opinion news. I think I’d much rather be shipped off to Iran to report or Saudi Arabia or the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan or to Haiti to cover the earthquake.
Sheridan also gets personal with her questions…
Speaking of marriage, are you dating?
I can tell you, Patricia, it will happen some day.
Well, are you in a serious relationship?
At the moment, not so much.
Do you think being a good-looking guy helped move your career along?
I think it’s all my brain. Listen, it’s television, right? So there’s that aspect to it. I also think if you can’t carry the day with your own arguments or make sense with breaking news … I think those breaking news situations, that’s where the audience really gets to know the individual. They are watching not just for news and information but because they have some sort of relationship with you through that box. They want to know how you are going to react in situations that are challenging.