Return to Transcripts main page
American Morning
Josie Karp Talks About Interview with Mike Tyson
Aired May 06, 2002 - 07:20 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: Boxing's bad boy Mike Tyson is at it again, this time outside the ring. He doesn't climb into the ring against Lennox Lewis until June 8, but Iron Mike was talking trash last week to our own reporter Josie Karp of CNN Sports Illustrated. Karp was caught in a Tyson tirade about how he is portrayed in the media.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MIKE TYSON, BOXER: I'm a wild guy, man. If you can't accept me like that -- you can accept everybody else. You can accept (EXPLETIVE DELETED) Joe Namath being a wild man, Mickey Mantle being a wild man, Babe Ruth being a wild man. But you have to accept me too because that's who I am. You put me in prison. I even like prison now. So if you take me back there, you won't be doing anything to me. This is just who I am.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ZAHN: This latest outburst follows a Tyson-Lewis brawl at a news conference back in January that nearly put that match in jeopardy. Remember that?
Well for more on the upcoming bout and what it's like to be caught in Mike Tyson's sights, we are joined now by Josie Karp -- good morning.
JOSIE KARP, CNN SPORTS ILLUSTRATED CORRESPONDENT: Good morning.
ZAHN: Describe what it was like to interview this guy as it was clear that he didn't care what anybody had to think or what he had to say?
KARP: Well you know when you're interviewing someone, normally you like to listen to what they say and kind of ask a question after that based on what they say. And with Mike Tyson these days, it's hard to sort of process exactly what he's saying so you go into a situation -- we had a whole bunch of reporters who were brought to Hawaii to talk to Mike Tyson. We were all going to talk to him individually. At one point there was a group interview. He had some interesting things to say in that, and afterward I talked to him one on one. And again, it was a situation where he sort of felt like he had some things he wanted to get off his chest and it didn't really matter what the questions were that were being asked. ZAHN: He was going to say it whether you asked the question or not.
KARP: He was going to say whatever he wanted.
ZAHN: Let's listen to part of that right now.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KARP: Can't you be a positive story?
TYSON: No, no way. I can't come across -- that's why I can't -- I won't talk nice to you and talk about fornicating with you and letting you (EXPLETIVE DELETED) my (EXPLETIVE DELETED) because if I was eloquent with you, would still look at me as a scum bag.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ZAHN: So what did you say to this guy after he said that?
KARP: I ignored it completely. I mean what can you say? What could you possibly say to that? And you have a personal reaction, you have a professional reaction, and I was there in Maui to talk to Mike Tyson as a professional. And in that situation I can't retaliate because he's not a person that you can argue with and reason with and say you know what, that's inappropriate because nobody has ever told Mike Tyson that's inappropriate. Even the judge who put him in jail, he never -- he never got the message what's appropriate and what's inappropriate. So it wasn't my place right there to say what's appropriate, what's inappropriate, you just move on and get out of the ring.
ZAHN: As sexual as the content was, was it at all threatening to hear this from Mike Tyson?
KARP: No, at no point did I feel like he was going to act on what he was saying or that he was going to assault me physically as opposed to verbally. No, nothing like that.
ZAHN: I think we have a little bit more of the interview now to share with our audience. Is that ready? And in the meantime, tell me more about what he said about how he wants to be accepted in the world. He doesn't much care what people have to think of him.
KARP: That's basically what he said that he's come to a point in his career where he feels like he has to be his own person, he has to be true to himself. And he even talked about other high profile athletes that he doesn't think are as true to their public image as they would have you believe, guys like Tiger Woods and Michael Jordan, entertainers like Chris Rock.
He said at least I am real. You might not like me, but this is who I am. I'm going to act how I want to act and I don't care what anybody else thinks. And that's sort of been his attitude he's portraying now as it's something he's come to recently, but that's kind of been his attitude all along. He's had a lot of different characters, but each one is one that he's tried on himself and tried to see how he likes it.
ZAHN: In one of the bizarre things he had to say to you it was that he likes being in jail.
KARP: Yes.
ZAHN: He's gotten used to it.
KARP: Well...
ZAHN: So what is that supposed to mean, that we're supposed to expect that kind of behavior and maybe that's not so scary to him after all that he might sit in prison for something he might do?
KARP: I think he was saying that there is nothing that scares me so you can expect anything at any point in time because the worst thing you can possibly do is put me in jail and you know what, I like it.
ZAHN: Let's go back...
KARP: I don't know if I believe that though.
ZAHN: Well...
KARP: You can't believe what he says.
ZAHN: Of course not. Let's come back to that small part where he was talking about mothers and daughters and how they should view him.
Let's listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TYSON: I'm a wild guy, man. If you can't accept me like that -- you can accept everybody else. You can accept (EXPLETIVE DELETED) Joe Namath being a wild man, Mickey Mantle being a wild man, Babe Ruth being a wild man. But you have to accept me too because that's who I am. You put me in prison. I even like prison now. So if you take me back there, you won't be doing anything to me. This is just who I am. You know what I mean?
I'm the animal that you guys made. So you guys deal with me. Put me to sleep, put me in the cage, whatever it may be, this is who I am thanks to you guys. You guys did everything. You guys invented (ph) everything. that's evil in this world, you guys invented it. The media invented it. You capitalize on it. If you really cared about the betterment of this country, of this world, you would put positive stories. You would be -- you would be...
KARP: Can't you be a positive story?
TYSON: Nay, no way. I can't come across -- that's why I can't -- I won't talk nice to you and talk about fornicating with you and letting you (EXPLETIVE DELETED my (EXPLETIVE DELETED) because if I was eloquent with you, would still look at me as a scum bag. It won't work because you have your perception of me. You elicit your perception of me from the camera, from the news, so I give you what you want and what I am miniaturely (ph).
KARP: Thanks very much for your time. Good luck in Memphis.
TYSON: Thank you very much. I would still love for you to give me a (EXPLETIVE DELETED).
KARP: Take care.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ZAHN: Wow, I don't know how you were composed enough to thank the guy for that verbal assault there?
KARP: Well you kind of -- you know you get -- you get programmed. And we were actually in the boxing ring doing that interview, and at that point, that's when I looked to get out.
ZAHN: But it is clear his handlers aren't in control of him and I guess maybe they don't think that much matters because what they view any kind of publicity is positive publicity.
KARP: And I think that there's an intimidation factor. I mean who's going to tell Mike Tyson you can't say that, you can't do that, because throughout all of his conversations the past days when he'd conducted those interviews, he had at times been threatening. And like I said, no one has ever told Mike Tyson since the time he was a teenager, you can't do that, that's not appropriate.
He had a trainer when he was a kid, Teddy Alice (ph), who is not with him now because he saw this path that this boxer was going down. No one was telling him what to do, what's right and what's wrong, and he said you know I can't be a part of it.
ZAHN: You going to go to the Lennox Lewis match?
KARP: I'll be there.
ZAHN: Good luck.
KARP: Thanks.
ZAHN: Josie Karp, thanks for dropping by this morning.
A little bit later on AMERICAN MORNING, should Mike Tyson be allowed to fight? Do you think his behavior should be an issue in giving him another chance to compete? Send your comments and questions to AM@CNN.com. And then coming up at 9:40 Eastern Time, we'll answer the -- your phone calls and your e-mails.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
