III 

110TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. RES. 597 

Designating June 2008 as ‘‘ ‘Wait Wait . . . Don’t Tell Me!’ Recognition 

Month’’. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JUNE 20 (legislative day, JUNE 19), 2008 

Mr. DURBIN (for himself and Mr. HAGEL) submitted the following resolution; 

which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary 

RESOLUTION 

Designating June 2008 as ‘‘ ‘Wait Wait . . . Don’t Tell 

Me!’ Recognition Month’’. 

Whereas ‘‘Wait Wait . . . Don’t Tell Me!’’, the National Public Radio news quiz show, which uses current news stories 

for questions and comedy, is celebrating the 10th anniversary of the show’s premiere in 1998; 

Whereas the programming and content created and distributed by National Public Radio is based on 3 core values, 

qualities of mind, qualities of heart, and qualities of craft 

(and despite those core values, National Public Radio still 

airs shows like ‘‘Wait Wait . . . Don’t Tell Me!’’ with a 

straight corporate face); 

Whereas, in 2008, ‘‘Wait Wait . . . Don’t Tell Me!’’ was 

named a winner of the George Foster Peabody Award, 

the oldest and most prestigious award in broadcasting 


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•SRES 597 IS 

(probably due to George Foster Peabody’s lifelong commitment to self-aggrandizing entertainers, spectacularly 

dumb criminals, and overly earnest scientists, who comprise the inspiration for the show); 

Whereas ‘‘Wait Wait . . . Don’t Tell Me!’’ carries on the tradition of humor that is part of our Second City by taping 

its show in the Chase Auditorium in downtown Chicago, 

Illinois (which may be the only place in the United States 

where people pay for tickets to watch a radio show that 

is broadcast for free); 

Whereas President John F. Kennedy once said, ‘‘I look forward to an America which will steadily raise the standards of artistic accomplishment and which will steadily 

enlarge cultural opportunities for all of our citizens.’’ 

(making it clear that President Kennedy never could have 

imagined ‘‘Wait Wait . . . Don’t Tell Me!’’); 

Whereas notable Americans such as Supreme Court Justice 

Stephen Breyer, actor Tom Hanks, United States Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald, New York Times columnist William Safire, and White House Press Secretary Dana 

Perino have appeared on the show (and luckily, few have 

suffered any significant, long-term damage to their careers); 

Whereas ‘‘Wait Wait . . . Don’t Tell Me!’’ host Peter Sagal 

and veteran newsman Carl Kassell have been described as 

‘‘the perfect team to liven up a Saturday’’ (rendering 

them entirely unsuitable for any gainful employment); 

Whereas ‘‘Wait Wait . . . Don’t Tell Me!’’ finds expression 

through a recognition that you don’t have to be a professional comedian to be humorous (a premise proven each 

week by a rotating panel of humorists, journalists, and 


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•SRES 597 IS 

others, including Roy Blount, Jr., Tom Bodett, Amy 

Dickinson, Adam Felber, Kyrie O’Connor, P.J. 

O’Rourke, Paula Poundstone, Paul Provenza, Charlie 

Pierce, Roxanne Roberts, and Mo Rocca); and 

Whereas ‘‘Wait Wait . . . Don’t Tell Me!’’, produced by National Public Radio and Chicago Public Radio, airs on 

nearly 450 National Public Radio member stations, and 

its audience has grown in every ratings period since its 

premiere in January 1998 (growth that is directly proportional to the boundless egos of the show’s creator and 

Executive Producer Doug Berman, Senior Producer Rod 

Abid, producers Mike Danforth, Emily Ecton, and Melody Kramer, technical directors Lorna White and Robert 

Neuhaus, and limericist Philipp Goedicke): Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the Senate— 

2 (1) designates June 2008 as ‘‘ ‘Wait Wait . . . 

3 Don’t Tell Me!’ Recognition Month’’; and 

4 (2) celebrates the show for its contributions to 

5 the Nation’s enduring creative spirit and for always 

6 bringing smiles to America’s Saturday mornings. 

Æ 


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