Brian,

The host of The Golden Globes was a livewire and a few remarks may have been inappropriate, but

the man who introduced Eva Lorgoria was nasty and some in the audience booed him. I felt

for Ms. Lorgoria, a talented actress. I enjoyed the program, however. Phyllis

Hi Brian,

I'm sorry to write under this post because I have a comment that is actually about something else from tonight's broadcast: the Tiger Mom story.

Since news about this book has exploded and changed minds, I have been wanting for some time to share my own ideas and angst about this.

I think that for a woman trained in the highest law education, she would take more care to not group people in such limiting, almost racist ways. Moreover, she should not attack and bad-name a whole group of people in order to gain her own fame, with information that is less than accurate.

Many people have only been addressing one side of the issue: the difference in cultures...No matter how different cultures are, there is one unifying aspect of human nature that we will not, and should not forget: the love of any mother for their child, and any parents' want for their kids to do their best, to achieve the highest they can be.

Do you honestly think that a sane, normal mother-- of any race, of any religion, or belief-- would call their kids "garbage?" The only thing I would say is Amy Chua is one example of one crazy strict parent-- I think it is UTTERLY unfair for one person to suddenly be brought into the spotlight as the prime example of a whole culture of people.

The argument is not whether or not "Chinese mothers are superior"-- as a 16 year old with first hand experience, I am actually quite offended by this comment. As a young Asian-American, am I going to be propelled to a future where my peers and their families are going to think that I grew up in a close-minded, superiority-complex filled environment? I am HURT, deeply. By the time I grow up, is working hard going to be something looked down upon as crazy?

Speaking from personal experience, my parents have NEVER, ever forced me, hit me, yelled at me, because like most Chinese-Americans, as with ANY parent, they have allowed me to be who it is I want to be, while supporting me in the only ways they can-- unconditional love. And no, I am not going to say that somehow this Unconditional love is something Unique to Chinese-American parent, or that C-A parents have somehow twisted its meaning, because they haven't.

If Amy Chua wants to lose my reputation, lose my people's reputation, just to get her own fame, then she can go right ahead with her false claims. The only thing is, I just wish that everyone wouldn't believe her as they are right now. (And is she even Chinese? I think she is from the Philippines, and can't even Speak Chinese!!! no offense to any Filipinos.) How can such a prestigious school as Harvard have accepted such a hurtful person as this? She has even made it to the Nightly News, something I would even feel uncomfortable to watch after this, even though I have watched it every evening for the past 4 years of my life.

Please-- does anyone out there believe me?

Good Evening Mr.Williams, Another fine broadcast this evening as always. We Honor Dr.Martin Luther King, Jr. today. Thoughts and prayers go out to Sargent Shriver and his whole family. So very sad. He certainly contributed much in his life to service to our country.

Now on to the broadcast. First of all always wonderful to see Richard on the broadcast and his exclusive report with access to Iran's nucelar reactor facility was extremely interesting. I saw his first report on Today and again on MSNBC and it was truly incredible the facility. Richard having to put on the lab coat, cover his shoes and wear the pocket radiation detector before entering the facility showed how much precaution one must take in entering. Seeing the pool with the ominious glowing blue light and knowing it is 25feet below the surface is disturbing. A truly amazing look inside this facility. As Richard stated the officials were uncomfortable and the cameras, yet they thought of it as a "goodwill' gesture. The statement by the Chief Nuclear Negotiator about the facility only being used to produce isotopes for cancer patients is again interesting. An unusual look at the Iran nuclear facility.

Always Excellent Reporting Richard!

The report by Kristan Welker from Tucson told of how Congresswoman Giffords is steadily improving with as the doctors stated a, "good weekend" with a successful surgery. It was nice to hear she is responding well and making movements voluntarily. It is encouraging and shows her fight to get better. Such a remarkable woman and making great progress. Also, good news to learn of two other injured victims who are now in good condition. One hopes they are released soon from the hospital. Thoughts and prayers go out to all the families of the victims.

Nice to see President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama doing a service project at a school in honor of remembering Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. today.

And A Very Happy Birthday to First Lady Michelle Obama!

Congratulations to All the Winners of Golden Globes last evening! Some truly fine performances were honored.

Thank You for the broadcast Mr.Williams. Peace to You and to All!

Be Well Everyone!

Stay Extra,Extra Safe and Well Richard! Looking forward to more of your excellent reports! Safe Travels!

Take Extra Good Care Richard and Crew!

Lisa

hola, brian,

that telephone conversation is hysterical. dementia is such a nasty thing, as alzheimers is, you have a living body but not the person that used to live within. i'm sure he would have had many good recommendations for our current economic situation and the waves of people who have been thrown into poverty in the last several years. i sure hope that all of the soup kitchens and food banks across the country are staying well stocked. i'm sure habitat for humanity, st. vincents's de paul, goodwill and the salvation army have their hands full.

richard, i was having visions of johnny mnemonic when the iranian negotiator was talking about the isotopes for cancer patients. i got the nasa email that astronaut john hernandez was leaving the astronaut corps, he sure had an interesting job at lawrence livermore lab when they were dismantling russia's nuclear missiles and keeping track of the material. pretty heavy duty work for the son of migrant farm workers from the french camp in stockton, california. very impressive.

best, anna martina

What happened to all those great football stories Nightly News used to show on Sunday Nights (or occasionally on another night)? Like the ones they aired on 9/8, 9/9, 9/19, 9/26, 10/17, 10/24 and 11/28? I really miss those football stories! Oh yeah, that's right--NBC isn't televising any more NFL games this season so there's no reason for Nightly News to air any more self-promotional football "news stories". Instead, the Sunday edition of Nightly News will now be airing stories that promote other NBC properties--like last Sunday's 2:25 story about the Golden Globe Awards (which were on immediately after Nightly News). And then there was Monday's follow-up story, which began with Brian Williams bragging that, "The Golden Globe Awards were seen by an estimated 17 million viewers here on NBC last night...." (Other estimates put the viewership at closer to 14 million.) Of course, Brian didn't mention that CBS handily won the overall ratings for Sunday night with an average audience of 20.38 million viewers to NBC's 12.77 million viewers (or that this year's Golden Globe ratings were down about 5% from last year's broadcast which was also on NBC). Nor did he mention that 60 Minutes (on CBS) beat the Golden Globes in the 8-9 PM hour. He also forgot to mention that CBS's coverage of the Jets-Patriots playoff game had 43.5 million viewers, a record for a divisional playoff game. Funny thing--on Sept. 10, Brian couldn't wait to tell us that the previous night's Saints-Vikings game (on NBC) "was the highest-rated regular season NFL game in 13 years." But mum's the word about CBS's record football ratings. Is that appropriate conduct for a professional network news anchor? Reporting Nielsen ratings only when the news is good for his network? An anchor is supposed to be a reporter, not a cheerleader. If Brian is going to report the Nielsen ratings, he should do so each night, not only on selective nights when NBC has something to brag about.

And what's the point of being a network news anchor if you can't also use your broadcast to promote your sponsors? Once again, Brian took on the role of corporate spokesman when he spent thirty seconds telling us all about the exciting new Starbucks drink size (it's nearly as big as the city of Trenton, he told us). Needless to say, the Starbucks logo was on screen for almost the entire story. This isn't the first time that Nightly News anchors have promoted Starbucks on the air. Just a few weeks ago (Jan. 5), Brian spent thirty seconds reporting the breaking news story that Starbucks is unveiling a new logo. On June 14, Lester Holt was thrilled to announce that Starbucks was providing free Wi-Fi in their stores. And on the 5/5/09 broadcast, Ann Curry introduced a story about McDonald's new gourmet coffees (Curry called them "delicious brews") that included excerpts from Starbucks ads and interview clips with Starbucks corporate personnel. Does Starbucks pay NBC to have the anchors read these promotional stories, or is it just something the anchors do on their own to get free coffee?

I guess Brian still hasn't gotten that atlas yet. Last July 16, he introduced a story about Mexico's drug wars by saying, "Overseas tonight...." And on Monday, he said, "Overseas now to Haiti...." Since Haiti is closer to the U.S. than Puerto Rico, I wouldn't exactly describe it as "overseas".

Finally, I'd like to thank the Nightly News producers for the great story about Amy Chua's parenting skills. This is a story that deserved three minutes on an evening newscast? Really? How many actual news stories did they ignore so they could tell us about Chua's family? It seems obvious that the producers are trying to turn Nightly News into the fifth hour of Today.

It is well that Sargent Shriver has been reunited with his beloved wife. Together they raised their children well and now those children, all adults, will go forward adding to the legacy. Condolences to all of the Shriver family as well as the extended Kennedy family. The family, as a whole, did amazing things for our country. We can never thank them enough. (I am a republican that can see all sides.) As always, Brian, you do good work.

Mr. Shriver was among a generation of the Kennedy Family that demonstrated the importance of going outside of one's comfort zone and facing challenges head on with a servant's heart to try and make the world a better place. It is quite obvious that those in power that he served had a great deal of confidence in his abilities and recognized and appreciated this man of quality of character and integrity.

It is unfortunate that there are not more like him in the current generation of "leaders". My sincere condolences to his family; I'm positive he has a front row seat waiting for him.

Brian: We all mourn the passing of Sargent Shriver. I'll catch you on tonight's broadcast.

hola, brian, i am glad that sargent shriver is with his wife, eunice, now. without any dementia and no doubt, many, many years younger, in my little utopia, here. they were both giants. it is interesting to see that the kennedy clan has withdrawn from politics, but we live in a world now where individuals can make a big difference, themselves, with help from others of like mind, without having to have the support of big government. your 'making a difference' spots are a perfect example. and the 'special olympics' is a perfect example. take good care, anna martina