The
new "Meet the Press" with moderator Chuck Todd had its debut on Sunday and the reviews have been largely favorable.
Variety noted that "the new Press still feels a lot like the old Press" and most reviewers agreed that the changes were mostly cosmetic.
The New York Times took note that Todd sports a goatee "and speaks in a direct, conversational manner, without punchy diction or pomposity."
President Barack Obama was the main attraction in introducing the latest incarnation of the venerable program. Close-up camera work gave the interview a sense of urgency, Variety reported.
NBC brought in panelists from the outside, including Nia-Malika Henderson of The Washington Post, Buzzfeed's John Stanton, and The Cook Political Report's Amy Walter. MSNBC's Joe Scarborough, Andrea Mitchell, and Michael Leiter were also on hand.
Todd, who first joined NBC as its political director in 2007, told Politico, "I'm not a believer in the five-minute interview."
The Obama interview was split into three segments to allow running commentary and to keep the pace moving, Variety reported. Panel discussion was held at a roundtable instead of side-by-side seating.
The
Huffington Post called the program "livelier" and "less stuffy."
Politico added "engaging" to "lively" in its review and said Todd was "personable" as well as "passionate" about politics.
Huffington noted that while Todd did not take a confrontational stance in interviewing Obama and allowed the president to develop his answers without interruption, he did ask at least one pointed question: "What do you tell the person that's going to get deported before the election that this decision was essentially made in your hopes of saving a Democratic Senate?" The Drudge Report gave a "Todd Makes Obama Squirm" headline to its coverage of the interview, Politico reported.
"Meet the Press" began as an NBC radio program hosted by Martha Rountree. It has been on television nearly 67 years making it the longest running program. Todd is its 12th permanent host, according to the network.
Though NBC is perceived as left-leaning, the program seeks to appear even-handed. "Meet the Press" has traditionally drawn blue-chip advertisers, according to Variety.
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