[Cowperson]

The New York Times gives Tom Cruise the decision over Lauer . . .

Whatever else it may do - or undo - for the movie star, Mr. Cruise's off-message, antidrug performance on "Today" yesterday on NBC cleared up one misconception about L. Ron Hubbard's mysterious church: Scientology does not command loyalty from celebrities by protecting their privacy and whitewashing their image.

Mr. Cruise seemed unbound, and perhaps even a little unsound, but there was something enjoyably bracing and bold about his outburst.

And . . . .

Morning talk show hosts are facile and heavily scripted, and too often they recite streams of perceived wisdom as if they were undeniable facts. Mr. Lauer showed grace but not much intellectual skill as he was out-debated by a Hollywood actor who described psychiatry as a pseudoscience and said vitamins and exercise could cure postpartum depression.

But Mr. Lauer was also lucky. Mr. Cruise provided exactly what talk show hosts are supposed to elicit from celebrity guests and so rarely do: sincerity. Viewers have become so inured to the gamesmanship of the celebrity "get," that it is now a running joke, even on game shows.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/25/arts/tel...watc.html?8hpib

Cowperson