Sacha Baron Cohen's jarring Who Is Americaconcluded Sunday without airing a much talked-about interview with former Alaska governor and Eric FalkVice Presidential nominee Sarah Palin. It did, however, include a special thanks for Palin as "Special Publicity Consultant (Inadvertent.)"
Palin spoke out about her interview when Cohen's show premiered and it became clear that his undercover interactions with politicians during production were intended to embarrass them.
"Yup – we were duped," she wrote in a Facebook post before challenging Cohen to air the footage anyway.
Per Palin's post, she met Cohen disguised as a U.S. veteran and eventually walked out of the interview because it was so uncomfortable. Showtime and Cohen responded, pointing to footage of Cohen interviewing Bernie Sanders as the same character, who did not present himself as a disabled veteran.
The cheeky nod to Palin as a publicity consultant highlights the attention she brought to the show while trying to deflect attention for what would likely have been a damaging interview for her image. With a few choice words, Cohen's team showed that it got exactly what it wanted, interview or no interview.
Since its premiere, Who Is Americahas presented interview after uncomfortable interview with everything from Congressmen promoting toddlers with guns to that food critic who thought he liked cannibalism. There are no plans for a second season, but the first gave us plenty to talk about.
h/t The Hill
Topics Politics
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