Furor Grows Over Celebrity Appearances on Palin Show

By DAVE ITZKOFF AND BILL CARTER
NYT

Hours after LL Cool J complained that Fox News was recycling an old interview with him for a new program hosted by Sarah Palin, representatives for the country musician Toby Keith, who was also listed as a guest for the show, made a similar charge against the cable channel.

In a telephone interview on Wednesday, Elaine Schock, a publicist for Mr. Keith said: “I have no idea what interview they are using. Toby’s talked to Fox a number of times, and I had no idea that this was going to be on Sarah Palin’s special. Fox has never contacted me — not now, not when they were putting this together, not at all. I have no idea what they’re using.”

Mr. Keith, whose songs include “Courtesy of the Red, White, & Blue,” was announced as a guest on “Real American Stories,” a program that Fox News has scheduled for Thursday night. Ms. Schock said he had not been interviewed by Fox News since 2008. Update: In a subsequent email message, Ms. Schock said that the interview with Mr. Keith likely happened in early 2009.

Asked if Mr. Keith was ever interviewed by Ms. Palin, Ms. Schock said, “Absolutely not.”

(Original here.)