Should ‘Today’ Have Called George W. Bush Interview Exclusive?

By Merrill Knox 

jenna and george bushThis morning on “Today,” Jenna Bush Hager interviewed her father, former President George W. Bush, about an exhibition of his portraits of world leaders that opens tomorrow at the Bush Presidential Library in Dallas. Although the “Today” show was careful to disclose the relationship between the two, the interview was billed as “exclusive” — a word that has an increasingly nebulous meaning in television news today.

“Contributing correspondent Jenna Bush Hager — notice one of the names there — got an an exclusive first look. Good get, Jenna!” Matt Lauer quipped while introducing the segment on “Today” this morning.

It’s certainly not the first time a television news personality has interviewed someone related — last year, CNN’s Chris Cuomo was criticized for interviewing his brother, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, on “New Day.”

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We want to know what you think: should the “Today” show have called the Bush interview “exclusive?” Let us know in the comments.

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