“Do you think he’s a killer?”, “I do”: the powerful beauty of a dialogue
The dialogue between a journalist and Biden stirs up the ghosts of the Cold War, but it is also a demonstration of the powerful beauty of journalism, interviews and communication between credible people. A movie question and answer
“Do you think Putin is a killer?” asks George Stephanopoulos and Joe Biden replies “I do”. One person’s question and the other’s answer, less than ten words in all, can hold an entire planet with bated breath. Of course one of them is the US President, this is obviously not a detail, otherwise now the ghosts of the Cold War would not be stird up. But let’s stop for a moment at the simple call and answer: it is a demonstration of the powerful beauty of dialogue, journalism, interviews, communication.
Maybe the ABC anchor had to avoid that question? No, he is free to ask and then censor “the question of questions” would have been unnatural or even paradoxical for his profession as a chronicler. Could the interlocutor respond more diplomatically and get around the obstacle? After all, he said only ‘I think so’: one cannot dispute the transparency of a thought. Putin’s reaction in the media might sound much less elegant…
Biden: I think Putin is a killer (cnn.com)
Many will point out that the interview was organized, that the question to Biden was agreed and that everything was prepared or wanted for the most varied reasons. On the other hand, you don’t usually meet the American head of state by accident at the bar. Some have speculated that the Washington leader has fallen into a kind of mistake, but it seems unlikely that a politician with that experience behind him will slip into a media interview.
The difference then in this case also lies in the credibility of the two figures, the journalist and the interviewee. If these same words had been uttered by boisterous and populist politicians, they would have sounded like one of their many boutades and would have made the harmless and impromptu sound of tin foil, for the time of a tweet.
A film could come out of this story. It’s a time when I imagine Tom Hanks in every film, of course I’d see him well in the White House as well. Dialogue would be a highlight of the plot. Two people, the question, the answer and the whole world outside.
