Skip to main content

Barbara Walters would expect Kamala Harris to do interviews, author says: 'Part of the job of being president'

Susan Page, author of "The Rulebreaker: The Life and Times of Barbara Walters," spoke about what the legendary journalist would think of Vice Harris Kamala Harris dodging interviews.

AUSTIN, Texas - The biographer of the late legendary broadcaster Barbara Walters says the iconic newswoman would expect Vice President Kamala Harris to do more interviews ahead of the presidential election. 

"I think Barbara Walters would be pursuing her," author Susan Page told Fox News Digital in an interview at the 2024 Texas Tribune Festival. "I think pursuing her with the expectation that part of the job of being president is talking to Americans, and one of the ways you talk to Americans is through the news media."

"She would expect both nominees to be doing interviews with serious journalists during a presidential campaign," Page added. 

TRUMP-VANCE TICKET HAS DONE A COMBINED 45 INTERVIEWS SINCE LAST MONTH COMPARED TO ONLY EIGHT FOR HARRIS-WALZ

Harris avoided taking questions from the press nearly 40 days since she emerged as the Democratic nominee before she finally granted an interview with CNN's Dana Bash alongside her running mate Tim Walz. 

Since then, she has only done two radio interviews. She has yet to hold a formal press conference. 

ABC PRESIDENTIAL DEBATE: MODERATORS DAVID MUIR AND LINSEY DAVIS FACT-CHECK TRUMP 5 TIMES, 0 FOR HARRIS

Former President Trump, meanwhile, has sought to highlight the contrast in media availability between the two, granting several interviews, holding multiple press conferences and participating in a televised town hall with Fox News' Sean Hannity.

Even following Tuesday's presidential debate, Trump took questions from the reporters inside the spin room and has done additional interviews. 

Page, Washington bureau chief for USA Today and author of "The Rulebreaker: The Life and Times of Barbara Walters," spoke about what inspired her to write about the journalism trailblazer. 

"For women journalists, no one has been a more iconic figure than Barbara Walters," Page said. "That's true for women in TV broadcast journalism, it's true for women in print journalism, like myself, as well. And there was no real biography of Barbara Walters ever written, and I thought she deserved one."

BARBARA WALTERS, JOURNALISTIC PIONEER, DEAD AT 93

CLICK TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

Throughout her decades-long career, Walters repeatedly made history, first becoming the first female co-host of NBC's "The Today Show," later becoming the highest paid news anchor ever when she joined ABC News.  

"If you grew up watching Barbara Walters, it wouldn't occur to you that a woman couldn't do big interviews, couldn't interview presidents and prime ministers and despots and murderers, and it also wouldn't occur to you that a woman couldn't make as much money or more than her male colleagues," Page said.

Walters died in December 2022 at age 93.

Fox News' Brian Flood contributed to this report. 

Data & News supplied by www.cloudquote.io
Stock quotes supplied by Barchart
Quotes delayed at least 20 minutes.
By accessing this page, you agree to the following
Privacy Policy and Terms and Conditions.