The new anchor of ‘CBS Evening News’ says her ‘hardest interview’ was Tom Brady
"Luckily, I didn’t embarrass myself too badly."
Norah O’Donnell has covered some of the biggest events of the last few decades, from Bill Clinton’s impeachment to the September 11 attacks to the 2008 presidential election. Her subjects have included presidents Donald Trump and Barack Obama and international figures like South Korean President Moon Jae-in and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
However, O’Donnell — who takes over as the new anchor of “CBS Evening News” next Monday — says her “hardest interview” was “probably” Tom Brady.
“I’m a Patriots fan,” she told The Boston Globe‘s Shirley Leung in an interview published Sunday, recalling her 2017 interview with Brady — which turned out to be nerve-wracking in a different way than most interviews.
Then a co-host of “CBS This Morning” and a Brady admirer, O’Donnell talked to the New England Patriots quarterback shortly after his 40th birthday. The topics included the longevity of Brady’s football career and his recently released wellness book.
“Then he asked me to throw a football,” O’Donnell told Leung. “Luckily, I didn’t embarrass myself too badly, but probably the most nervous I have ever been in an interview was having to throw a football alongside the greatest of all time.”
During the beginning of the three-minute segment, Brady can even be heard complimenting O’Donnell on a throw.
The origins of O’Donnell’s Patriots fandom is unclear; she was born in Washington, D.C., and grew up in Texas and South Korea. Still, on social media, the 45-year-old and her family are not shy about rooting for New England.
Go Patriots !!! ?? pic.twitter.com/jg9yfkqw3z
— Norah O’Donnell?? (@NorahODonnell) February 3, 2019
Somewhat ironically, O’Donnell is taking over the prestigious “CBS Evening News” anchor position from Jeff Glor, a Buffalo native and diehard Bills fan.
