BET’s man of the hour, but only briefly

For a newsman whose show just got canceled, Black Entertainment Television’s Ed Gordon was a pretty popular guy Tuesday morning.

His exclusive interview Monday night with beleaguered Sen. Trent Lott (R-Miss.) turned him into Tuesday’s media man of the hour. “It’s been a busy morning, and I’m operating on only two hours sleep,” Gordon said after appearances on CBS’ “The Early Show,” ABC’s “Good Morning America,” Don Imus’ syndicated radio show and MSNBC.

While professing discomfort at being in the spotlight, he clearly was savoring a moment of professional acclaim. “This is the reason why journalists do what they do,” he said. “At some point, all eyes are trained on you, like an athlete in the big game. And you want the ball. You want to be prepared and professional, because this is a real opportunity to shine.”

His special, “Conversation With Ed Gordon,” was seen by 830,000 viewers, about double the network’s audience during the 8 p.m. time slot.

Gordon said he’d been receiving congratulatory calls from colleagues, news analysts and Washington insiders for his subtle but probing questioning of Lott, who is under fire for remarks he made at fellow GOP Sen. Strom Thurmond’s 100th birthday party, which were seen by many as racially divisive.

Gordon insistently pressed Lott not only on his remarks but on his voting record, which has been blasted by civil rights groups. Some political observers said the interview was damaging to Lott, and could accelerate his political downfall.

Whatever the impact on Lott, for Gordon the timing couldn’t be better. He has had an uneasy relationship with BET since the cable channel canceled his nightly news series “BET Tonight With Ed Gordon” earlier this month to focus more on entertainment programming. “I don’t know what my future is here,” he said. “We’re in continuous talks.” In addition to canceling “BET Tonight With Ed Gordon,” the cable network also axed its regular news show, “Lead Story.” BET executives said the cancellations will make room for new programming that would include more news specials and documentaries.

BET spokesman Michael Lewellen said Gordon’s interview with Lott was the kind of programming BET was interested in pursuing, rather than nightly news shows. “Instead of locking ourselves with the analytical side of news, we want to centralize and concentrate on news specials such as this.”

Still, Gordon said he hopes BET reverses the decision.

“Yes, there is tremendous irony with the timing of this interview,” Gordon said. “I can only hope that this situation is much like it was earlier this year with ABC when there were whispers that they were considering canceling ‘Nightline.’ I hope BET sees the error of their ways and brings this show back.”

Gordon got the call to do the interview after Lott talked with BET founder Robert Johnson about the controversy. “I don’t know what was discussed there,” Gordon said. “I don’t involve myself in those dealings. What I did do after that was contact Sen. Lott’s representatives and make sure they knew there were going to be high journalistic standards about this, that we wouldn’t pull any punches.”

Gordon researched the controversy and Lott’s record over the weekend: “I just sequestered myself, read as much about him as I could. I also called a couple of people who I trust to bounce some things off them, and gauge some questions.”

Gordon, 42, also was responsible for an earlier scoop at the cable network: In January 1996, he landed an exclusive interview with O.J. Simpson just a few months after the former football star was acquitted in the murder of his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend, Ronald Lyle Goldman.

Like his interview with Lott, a Simpson interview was the most sought after “get” for major media outlets, and some news executives expressed outrage that Simpson bypassed more prominent exposure to appear on BET, which was more known for airing of music videos.

That interview also raised Gordon’s profile. He left BET soon afterward for a three-year stint at NBC and MSNBC. Although he did some noteworthy interviews, he was not a high-profile presence there, according to insiders. The Detroit native returned to BET in 2000 when the network revised its news programming.

Contrasting the two interviews, Gordon said, “There’s some deja vu here, but Simpson was so surreal, and had such huge magnitude on so many levels,” he said. “Our nation was absolutely riveted on him. It was a national soap opera. The Lott interview is big mostly on a political level.”