Overcompensation: (psychiatry) an attempt to overcome a real or imagined defect or unwanted trait by overly exaggerating its opposite.Today brings a prime example of the phenomenon in the person of Brian Williams, overcompensating for his image as a pampered straight arrow by joking about having a vast staff of servants, looking forward to the prospect of watching some nude male swimming, and, yes, doing meth to get going in the morning.
The Nightly News host was a phone guest on Willie Geist's new Way Too Early show on MSNBC, which airs from 5:30-6 AM as a lead-in to Morning Joe. Asked by Geist to describe his morning routine, Williams went off on a self-deprecating riff that included these gems:
- "Normally, some of the people on our valet staff, some people from the usher's office, mostly from the part of the residence that's on the public tour, not where the First Lady and I live and sleep, are in and out all night long preparing the body for the workday."
- "[German swimmer Biederman] is the guy who vowed just 48 hours ago to race Phelps without the suits, so I expected some nice highlights there. For just I moment I thought maybe we could see block and tackle swimming through the water alongside those men, but not to be."
- "I normally have prepared for me just a bit of methamphetamine if it's going to be a rough morning and I'm going to have a hard time waking up."
—Mark Finkelstein is a NewsBusters contributing editor and host of Right Angle. Contact him at mark@gunhill.net.
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Nude Male Swimming
July 30, 2009 - 07:19 ET by allanfHe does seem to look lustfully at President Obama. I thought Williams was going to suggest they get a room.
HARKEN BACK TO MARY TYLER MOORE
July 30, 2009 - 07:34 ET by SgthulkaBrian Williams - The Ted Baxter of a new generation.
MARE!
Oh yeah... I believe you
July 30, 2009 - 07:42 ET by rimskyOh yeah... I believe you nailed it there.
Can't you just picture the
July 30, 2009 - 08:17 ET by kgCan't you just picture the "Winter Solstice" office party at NBC? What a bunch of party animals. Brian on meth, Chris just buzzing with thrills, Keith drunk on himself, Maddow wondering about sexual attraction Chris has on Obama and David telling Palin jokes with Obama speech reruns on the big screen TV.
"DumbAssity of Dope"
"I normally have prepared
July 30, 2009 - 07:36 ET by motherbelt"I normally have prepared for me just a bit of methamphetamine....
Brian "Mickey Blue Eyes" Williams
not sarcastic??
July 30, 2009 - 07:43 ET by SouthJersey1953Maybe he was not being sarcastic, but actually stating the facts of how his day starts....
"Maybe if we keep our heads buried in the sand, this will blow over" - The Congressional Republicans
All hair and Tan
July 30, 2009 - 08:34 ET by nadadhimmiWilliams is a brainless pretty boy. The male version of Couric. They are equally venial, vapid and vacant
A liitle grain
July 30, 2009 - 08:40 ET by jaywlIs there always a little grain of truth in jokes on one's self? He ad-libbed this and I think it is rather difficult to speak on the fly about something of which you are not familiar with. If I had to complete "My boyfriend and I..." and was given time, I suppose I could say something, funny or not. But, to do so quickly, on the fly, I don't think so. Unless, of course I had a boyfriend. Does Williams have a "little" personal staff, does he spend a half hour adjusting himself as Dan Rather did? Pomposity? Yes.
Not enough, eh Brian
July 30, 2009 - 09:11 ET by iveseenitallIt seems to me that Williams fantasizes about making even more money than he does. Of course, in his "jokes" there is more than a grain of sarcasm towards those who believe he is pampered little twit, which he is. And he's a flaming "liberal"--who da' thunk? He and his ignorant "elite" friends don't have a clue how the average American lives.
NEVER,NEVER trust a "liberal"
→ overly exaggerating
July 30, 2009 - 09:22 ET by Cool ArrowOK, I pick nits, but by definition, exaggeration is already an excessive state.
And Princeton U. allows that definition to stand?
It's similar to the "added bonus" in those TV ads. All bonuses are added or they wouldn't be bonuses.
Hope is an excuse for doing nothing - Rush Limbaugh
Bri Bri
July 30, 2009 - 09:35 ET by RoloTOnce again....Williams is a smarmy, unctuous lightweight. I cannot believe anyone watches his lame "news."
Somewhere Captain Jean-Luc
July 30, 2009 - 09:54 ET by Cthulhu2012Somewhere Captain Jean-Luc Picard is having a total /facepalm moment.
Why choose the lesser of two evils?
Hey Bri,
July 30, 2009 - 10:25 ET by mattmJust read the teleprompter, you little punk.
BTW - When did all this newsreader-as-celebrity crap start anyway? Even the local stations promote their newsreaders as if they were the story instead of just the reader of the story.
July 30, 2009 - 10:32 ET by jessieHWell, meth explains his daily comments.
Teleprompter Withdrawal
July 30, 2009 - 10:37 ET by slickwillie2001Just as with the Bamster, you see here what happens when these airheads get disconnected from their teleprompters. Stupid cops, meth in the morning, same deal.
Brian Williams
July 30, 2009 - 11:40 ET by grumpyoldbWhat Mr. Williams seems not to know is very simple. An Idiot is still and Idiot, no matter how you try to spin it. And Mr. Williams, if you have never met a real idiot in your life, I suggesst that you look in a mirror....