Washington City Paper: Contents for Feb. 10

Mr. Righteous
Black conservative media phenom Armstrong Williams loves hyping himself almost as much as right-wingers love listening to him.

Cover Story

Mary Matalin is fawning over Armstrong Williams. Matalin, host of the CNBC talk show Equal Time and former political strategist for President George Bush, introduces the black conservative talk-radio host, budding television star, public-relations executive, and syndicated columnist as a “mega-multimedia Wunderkind!”

Equal Time rapidly lapses into a syrupy, right-wing lovefest. The 35-year-old Williams sits comfortably under the hot lights, looking suave in his double-breasted blue suit. Matalin and her co-host, free-lance writer Barbara Howar, lavish him with compliments and toss softball questions.

Matalin wants to know why Williams calls himself “Meteor Man,” a nickname he borrowed from the 1993 movie about a black superhero. He flashes her a toothy, “aw shucks” grin. “I guess it's because I go around the world spreading values,” he says, with about as much modesty as you'd expect from someone comparing himself to a superhero. Matalin and Howar coo appreciatively.... Continued

Issue of Feb. 10 - 16, 1995

News and Features

Mr. Righteous
Black conservative media phenom Armstrong Williams loves hyping himself almost as much as right-wingers love listening to him.
Cover Story By David Plotz
Carney's Army
The Mail By David Piercy
Think Globally, Paint Locally
The Mail By Heusted McNeill
Our Colorful Past
The Mail By C. Fletcher
Shading the Issue
The Mail By Jr. and Artee Milligan
Shelter and the Storm
The Mail By Connie Sharp
Think Locally, Act Loony
The Mail By Maria Josephy Schoolman
Racial Recipes
The Mail By William Addams Reitwiesner
Wishful Thinking
The Mail By Michael Makarczyk
Addictive Reading
The Mail By Josh Criss
Monkey Shines
The Mail By Green B. Gilka
A Whiter Shade of Pale
The Mail By Steve Buc