Yes she did and she'll porbably salute them when she leaves......
Posted on 05/14/2006 12:40:16 PM PDT by COUNTrecount
The front page of Saturday's Style section in the Washington Post carried an article on commencement addresses by Don Oldenburg. But the really amazing nugget came about 25 paragraphs in:
Most universities settle for small-splash speakers such as state politicians or captains of local industry, but others aggressively enter the celebrity lottery. Generally this means bestowing an honorary degree and covering travel expenses, rather than paying a fee...But some offer big bucks. Katie Couric, the soon-to-be CBS anchor, will receive $110,000 to speak at the University of Oklahoma's commencement -- all paid for from private funds, the university emphasizes.
Often, speakers discount their fees, or forgo them altogether. Bill Clinton, who can command more than $150,000 for speaking engagements, isn't taking money for commencement remarks...
Wow, Katie Couric, more shameless than Bill Clinton. That's amazing. Now remember this little fee whenever Katie starts harping on tax cuts for the rich, or making lame cracks about how she had to take out a loan to gas up her minivan. Let's imagine she spoke for 20 minutes. That's a wage of $330,000 an hour. And people resent Martha Stewart?
For $330,000 an hour, what did she offer the Oklahoma students? Did she unravel every secret in the Da Vinci Code? Did she offer one of those quick courses in how to get rich in real estate? Or maybe the talk about how you, too can cadge a federal grant out of the government to start a small business? No. As you might guess, the Norman Transcript reported she suggested graduates should try hard work and perserverance as she made lame jokes and bandied about lame platitudes when she spoke on Friday night:
Couric also joked with graduates about her newfound knowledge of an Oklahoma "Sooner."
"But who am I to question your mascot? My university's mascot is the Wahoo, a fish capable of drinking twice its weight. In retrospect, it's quite appropriate," Couric said, drawing gradual laughter once again....
"If you skip that keg party to go the extra mile at work, you'll probably feel better in the morning," Couric said, drawing laughter....
Finally, Couric emphasized the importance of acceptance and awareness of others and the world, despite difficult moments such as the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing and 9/11 attacks.
"The world is a scary place, but it is filled with peace loving, law abiding people. We are so much more alike than different. Celebrate our differences, but celebrate what unites us as well."
I'm sure Osama bin Laden would agree that he and Couric are more alike than different. (Or....maybe not.) Perhaps most shamelessly, Couric suggested that she's in the same boat with graduates, who are about to make, if they're lucky, half as much in a year as she just made in less than a half hour:
"Right now, we're about in the same boat, about to step out into the next moment of our lives," Couric said, referring to her new position as a CBS news anchor. "I'm getting ready to say good-bye to the world I've known. A ship is always safe in the harbor, but that's not what it's meant to do."
AP's report added that Couric told the graduates about spunk: "Not only do I like spunk, but you've got to have it," she said. "If you don't have it, get it." Katie certainly has it, about six figures worth.
The Couric selection was debated on campus. One editorialist was anti-Couric, saying rival Oklahoma State graduates would hear President Bush, and OU got a "news reporter." The counterpoint was reliably anti-Bush, claiming that he's failed everything he's tried (including keeping the country safe) and Couric was a much better choice. Her on-air colonoscopy was "ballsy."
And then there's the guy who went too far in his anger that at the end of his college rainbow, Katie got the pot of gold.
Is this a state university or a private institution?
LOL! We all know what she is going to talk about. Yawn. She'll get to wear black again.
Yes she did and she'll porbably salute them when she leaves......
You'd be surprised how much money speakers get at graduations and other events. Sometimes they donate the money back to the school or other charity.
They didn't even get a "news reporter", they got a shoe model...
Perhaps she did. It would look better.
So did Katie charge $110K to tell the graduates that capitalism is an oppressive,exploitative economic system that destroys all lives that it touches...except those of white,heterosexual,conservative males?
What a God-awful waste of money.
$100,000 for hearing blather you can hear for free each day on the boob tube.
I pity the fools who set up that pathetic deal.
Here's a quarter. Call someone who cares.
Somehow,I think not.I mean,do you know difficult it is to live "comfortably" on the Upper West Side of Manhattan?
Just ask Howard Stern...or Yoko.They'll tell you.
I want to know why Katie is sooo greedy that $100,000 wasn't enough for her.
how long until she runs for office as a democrat? maybe 2008.
This money is going under her mattress ... she's looking ahead a couple of months to when CBS gives her the axe, that's all.
Well, in a capitalist system, she can ask for whatever the market will bear.
What ticks me off is if this is a state school, there sure as heck are better things it could've done with the money.
If the university's a private institution, I think they need to learn where money really comes from.
I would love to buy this 'witch' for what she's worth, and then sell her for what 'she' thinks 'she's' worth....
I wouldn't have to work or worry about money the rest of my life....
She must really think she's something....
Good report.
Must say though -- I like having folks like you as my virtual 'neighbors'.
Greedy.
<-------- fool his money -------->
Kinda shows where Americas head is at... there was a time when the great entrepreneurs and philanthopists would consider it a great privilege to give this kind of speech.
"I was at Katie Curic's commencement speech(my graduation) and nothing was out of the line or political. Her speech was good and inspiring(especially to journalism majors) and if people didn't know she was a liberal anchor, nothing in that speech suggested she was."
It was good that she was unobjectionable but it sound like a very unexceptional commencement speech as well, the kind of speech you could get from some other major figure for free.
Besides, I bet Dan Rather has more free time these days! :-)
Puke!
I wouldn't pay to hear her speak, as a matter of fact, you would have to pay me.
I got lucky-I had William F. Buckley, Jr. for a commencement speaker.
Congratulations on your graduation. Your report sounds like the others I've heard on her speech. As much as I dislike her, it seems she kept her liberal rants in check.
Nothing wrong with making money. If OU wanted to pay me $110,000 to give a pep talk I'd take it too, as would most of the people complaining about it now.
I think it's a state school, but they said it came out of private funds, which means the endowment that the alumni donate to the school....
Thanks for the eyewitness report.
You're correct, the University of Oklahoma is a state school.
Well, so much for higher education.
She has "man hands" !
Oklahoma is a state school, but supposed the money was donated by private sources.
Rather illiberal of her isn't it?
yes rather capitalistic of her :)
... so how many scholarships for poor kids could that have funded?
If the folks who work there are that bright, and presumably they're college grads, would they be throwing money away on an appearance by Ms. Couric? And if their alumni are that bright, why would they give money to an institution that would fritter it away on an appearance by Ms. Couric?
Minus expenses of course. I used to book celebrities and it costs a lot for their time and money to fly them out, put them up in hotels, limos, etc...
I see you don't understand how endowments work....
Alumni give money to the school for the SCHOOL to use. Like Ohio State used some endowment money for the upgrade to their football stadium.
Endowments are used for scholarships as well, but also to fund other goings-on at the school.
They didn't pay that JUST for Katie Couric. I see this is the FR make a mountain out of a molehill thread ANYWAY. If you've got that big a problem with it, find an alumni and have him complain.
Otherwise, who gives a flip?
That is ridiculous.
"Soupy Sales"
I still remember Soup's Words Of Wisdom from his old show:"Be true to your teeth and they won't be false to you. Now what do we mean by that?" That alone was worth the 10 grand in dental work!
Well, whether or not she was "exceptional" in her speech, she got big applause/laughter/reaction from both graduating students and the parents in the stadium. And you could see why she is worth millions.
I couldn't compare it to other commencement ceremonies, since this is the first time I attended one.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.