NBC's Conan O'Brien Works in Random Live Earth Pitch in Russert Chat

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MRC intern Joe Steigerwald wrote the following post.

You've got to give credit to Al Gore, he certainly knows how to play the mass media like a fiddle, particularly NBC.

Eight days ago, NB editor Brent Baker picked up on an NBC Universal press release about how the peacock network and its sister networks will cover the upcoming Live Earth concerts a grand total of 75 hours.

That doesn't count the gratuitious promotional pitches for Live Earth that may be embedded within NBC programming. Take last night's (June 13) "Late Night with Conan O'Brien."

In a blatant and out-of-the-blue pitch, O’Brien conjured a Live Earth question for "Meet the Press" host Tim Russert.

For some context here, O'Brien and Russert had just finished talking about one time the Sunday talk show host interviewed Russian nationalist Vladimir Zhirinovsky:

Tim Russert: And he says in perfect English, "you mean a cutaway?" The only English he knew was "cutaway."

Conan O'Brien: That's -- the world -- the world, that you know -- in the entire, you know, globe, everybody knows the cutaway. Yeah, that's something you can be assured of. I'm told there's this -- I've been hearing about it a lot at NBC. Maybe you're in on this. There's going to be this giant, eco-friendly concert to promote --

Russert: Oh, Fourth of July, Al Gore.*

O'Brien: Fourth of July.

Russert: Live Earth.

O'Brien: Al Gore, Live Earth. This is gonna promote the greening of the planet and efforts to be, you know, carbon neutral, the whole nine yards. Are you gonna go to this concert?

Russert: I think I have to break out the tie dye and head band and be there. I mean, I went to wood –

O'Brien: Things have changed.

*Russert and O'Brien were three days off. Live Earth will take place on July 7, 2007, a Saturday.