New Orleans Station Apologizes for Mo Farah Interview
Farah asks critics to go easy on unprepared interviewer.
By Peter Gambaccini
The now notorious interview that WDSU-TV conducted with Mo Farah after his Rock ’n’ Roll New Orleans Half Marathon victory on Sunday gained a second wind by Wednesday, as newspaper Internet sites and bloggers mocked the misinformation conveyed and the lack of preparedness on the part of the station. Interviewer LaTonya Norton asked two-time Olympic gold medalist Farah “haven’t you run before” and, despite Farah’s explanation that he’d never done a marathon, identified him as “male winner of the Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon” while a graphic under Farah’s on-screen image also called him “Marathon Winner.” No mention of Farah’s Olympic accomplishments was made.
The criticism of the interview proliferated so widely that later on Wednesday, WDSU issued an apology. “We express our sincere apology to Mr. Farah and his many fans who may have been offended by our error,” the statement read. “We hope that Mr. Farah will have occasion to visit New Orleans again and that we may have the opportunity to apologize in person.”
Farah, who endured the interview with patience, grace and perhaps a bit of bafflement, took to Twitter and gallantly leapt to the defense of the interviewer. He tweeted, “Just wanna say to everyone being nasty to LaTonya Norton please stop!! She made a mistake like we all do!! She didn’t mean anything by it."
Farah, along with being a champion of New Orleans after a hard-fought narrow win over Gebre Gebremariam, seems to have emerged with his reputation as a gentleman greatly enhanced. Comments responding to his tweet called him “Most appealing Briton right now,” “such a decent person,” and “a wonderful human being.” One suggested “Mo Farah for Nicest Sportsman of the Year 2013.”
