5:22 pm - 01/24/2013
Well, if you were looking to Katie Couric to get the whole truth on the ongoing mega-saga that is Manti Te'o's fake girlfriendhoax, I'm sorry to say, prepare to be sorely disappointed and increasingly confused. The veteran news reporter scored the first on-camera interview with Manti Te'o which aired Thursday afternoon. Sure, a better timeline was constructed, but the web of lies continues to leave those listening flummoxed and highly skeptical about where the real story is.
Couric tried her best to serve several hardball questions at Te'o, but his answers only continued to confuse — making the whole thing an even harder mess to understand. But that didn't stop Couric from following up on her skepticism. To be fair, it must be hard to keep an unbiased tone in the face of such a red flag-ridden, rambling story.
"Are you gay?" Couric asks. Manti dismisses the possibility saying, "No, far from it. Faaaaaaaaar from that," which made both Te'o and the audience laugh. Couric was addressing earlier rumors that Te'o used the fake girlfriend hoax to hide his sexuality. Te'o maintains that the voice he spoke with on the phone didn't sound like a man, and even complimented the supposed mastermind of the hoax, Ronaiah Tuiasosopo, saying, "If he somehow made that voice, that's an incredible talent."
Dressed in the sort of outfit you'd see high school athletes wear on game day — khaki slacks and a striped cardigan — Te'o's tale unfolded slowly throughout the hour. But instead of giving us answers, he only raised more questions.
Hollywood
Manti Te'o's full interivew with Katie Couric, insists he's not gay and wasn't in on the hoax!!!
Well, if you were looking to Katie Couric to get the whole truth on the ongoing mega-saga that is Manti Te'o's fake girlfriendhoax, I'm sorry to say, prepare to be sorely disappointed and increasingly confused. The veteran news reporter scored the first on-camera interview with Manti Te'o which aired Thursday afternoon. Sure, a better timeline was constructed, but the web of lies continues to leave those listening flummoxed and highly skeptical about where the real story is.
Couric tried her best to serve several hardball questions at Te'o, but his answers only continued to confuse — making the whole thing an even harder mess to understand. But that didn't stop Couric from following up on her skepticism. To be fair, it must be hard to keep an unbiased tone in the face of such a red flag-ridden, rambling story.
"Are you gay?" Couric asks. Manti dismisses the possibility saying, "No, far from it. Faaaaaaaaar from that," which made both Te'o and the audience laugh. Couric was addressing earlier rumors that Te'o used the fake girlfriend hoax to hide his sexuality. Te'o maintains that the voice he spoke with on the phone didn't sound like a man, and even complimented the supposed mastermind of the hoax, Ronaiah Tuiasosopo, saying, "If he somehow made that voice, that's an incredible talent."
Dressed in the sort of outfit you'd see high school athletes wear on game day — khaki slacks and a striped cardigan — Te'o's tale unfolded slowly throughout the hour. But instead of giving us answers, he only raised more questions.
- When did former college football quarterback from the Oregon State Beavers, Lyle Moevao, get involved?
- Te'o explained that the two were friends that talked "through Facebook" — can he be trusted?
- Was he also duped by Lennay Kekua, or was he in on the hoax with Ronaiah?
- Does Te'o know that Santa isn't real, either?
- How many and which friends of his confirmed Lennay was real? Were they also in on the hoax?
- Does Te'o have any friends in real life that aren't on the Internet or in on this hoax?
- Does Te'o understand why it looks like he's also in on the hoax?
- How could someone who alleged skepticism from the get-go let a relationship where he never met or spoke to the person via video chat, let this ruse go on for four years?
- Do we need to require a Common Sense 101 seminar for all college freshman now?
- How many times did Te'o try to FaceTime with Lennay before he gave up trying?
- Why would he ever give up trying?
- When it came to attempting to see Lennay after her accident (when she was allegedly in the hospital) on his way back home to Hawaii, why didn't he just change his plane ticket?
- Why was he scared to broach the subject with his parents? Why did he think, when they are so clearly understanding and supportive of their son and his relationship, that they wouldn't be OK with him changing his flight to see his girlfriend who just nearly died?
- Seriously, did he really believe that his parents wouldn't let him come home from school a few hours later in order to briefly visit his girlfriend, who was in a coma, in the hospital when they all knew he supposedly loved her?
- Does Te'o really know what love is, if he gave up that easily on seeing the love of his life?
- Does Te'o still not see why this story looks like a total cover-up and complete horses**t?
- HOW IN THE WORLD did he let her come to Hawaii and get away with not seeing her? Why didn't he just go to the hotel himself?
- Does Te'o actually know what a respirator sounds like?
- Why keep a voicemail of a girl giving you s**t for having another girl answer his phone?
- If there was no possible way this could've happened, why didn't he call Lennay out for being delusional and cut things off there?
- How is Manti Te'o so understanding of such elaborate stories?
- Did he ever ask Lennay, after she confessed to being alive but hiding from drug dealers who were after her, why she lied about the cancer?
- Wouldn't that sort of freak a guy out? Didn't he think how insane that was?
- Did Te'o ever question her, then, about the sounds of her breathing, the story of the nurses' discussing her heart rate, and that damn respiratory machine?
- WHY? HOW? WHAT
- Does Te'o really believe this s**t he's tryin' to sell?
- Does Te'o realize how scripted the following quote sounds? Is this still all part of some script? "The greatest joy in any child's life is to make your parents proud, and the greatest pain is to know they're experiencing pain because of you."
- Does Te'o know the term "crocodile tears"?
- Did Te'o question Lennay as to WHY it took her from December 6 to December 21 to take a f**king web cam photo of her with a sign?
- Seriously, though. That's like, 15 days.
- Why even bring up Lennay at all during the Heisman Trophy stuff, when he knew something was amiss? Why not just say "no comment"?
- How far from gay is "far from it," Te'o?
- Does Katie Couric believe anything this guy just said?
- Why didn't Te'o immediately cease all contact with Lennay after she mysteriously returned? Because I'd be all, 'b**ch, peace!'
- How gullible is Manti Te'o, if this bizarre story is actually somehow real?
- WHERE THE F**K IS RONAIAH TUIASOSOPO? WHY WON'T HE SPEAK OUT?
- Why does a college football sensation at arguably one of the most football-obsessed schools in the country have to resort to dating a girl online?
- Are you sure this isn't just an elaborate bearding scheme for a secret romantic relationship with Tuiasosopo, Te'o? (It's OK, you can level with us!)
- It sure is an interesting coincidence that Lennay is one letter away from Lenny, don't you think?
- So what is it, Te'o? Are you gay or are you just dumb and gullible? Out with it.
Hollywood
not savvy not self assured somewhat emotionally immature with not internal alarm system
i don't think he was in on it and i don't think he is gay. i think he really is totally humiliated that he fell for it.
i wish that the media (and ontd) spent more time hating on the perpetrator who obvs has serious issues - who does that!??? - than hating on this poor foolish guy
i have a nephew who matured slower. not developmentally disabled. he just matured slower with girls and dating and whatnot. he could've been this guy.
his own siblings teased him for being gay. it was shameful. then he eventually met someone, had a son. now that relationship has kinda run its course. these things happen. his siblings? back to teasing him that he's gay. it's crazy and i shade my relatives for even having this backwards thinking.
Edited at 2013-01-24 11:33 pm (UTC)
What was she supposed to ask? It's a valid question.
When I first heard the story, that was the very first thing my friends and I thought.
It's not like he was being coerced. She had to ask the question, because let's be honest... he was in a relationship with a "girl" who turned out to be some guy that he knows. It was proper to ask it.
People don't have to be one thing or another. And while this whole thing is sounding sketchier by the day, it also sounds rather a lot like the sort of thing a nerdy awkward 14 year old would do to big themselves up to their friends, and this guy? May well be just reallllly immature.
But I have to say also think he is gay.
Because Football is Macho's wolrd.
Think about it if he is gay what kind of option he has?
Do not want to screw with girls but if he don't screw with girls just like others people gonna suspicious about his sexuality.
So he has no choice. Make a fantasy girlfriend is the only way to shut people mouth up.
So if he is gay or not I really feel sorry for him.
like you can watch this shit on Catfish every week
HILARIOUSREVEALING AND GREATI think the story has really died down though.
http://deadspin.com/5976517/manti-t
Read this
November 28th, 2009: Manti Te’o and Lennay Kekua reportedly meet following a Notre Dame game at Stanford. Te’o later claims that he wasn’t introduced to Kekua until 2010. They become online friends, and stay in touch. Their relationship eventually develops romantically. It’s later revealed that there was no meeting in person between the two.
April 28th, 2012: Kekua is hospitalized after a car accident. Two months later, it’s discovered during her rehab from the accident that she is dying of leukaemia. Te’o speaks with her nightly via telephone and online.
September 10th, 2012: Kekua is released from hospital, and appears to be on the path toward recovery.
September 12th, 2012: Within six hours of his 72-year-old grandmother, Annette Santiago, dying, Te’o is informed by Kekua’s older brother that she, too, has passed away.
September 15th, 2012: Notre Dame beats Michigan State, holding the Spartans to a measly three points, thanks in large part to Te’o's dozen tackles on the day.
September 22nd, 2012: On the day of Kekua’s funeral, Te’o, following his girlfriend’s wishes, plays in the game against Michigan, collecting two interceptions and forcing two others, as Notre Dame goes to 4-0 with a 13-6 victory. Many in the crowd watching the game wear leis to support the Hawaiian born Te’o.
October 1st, 2012: Te’o is featured in a cover story for Sports Illustrated, entitled The Full Manti. The article, written by senior writer Pete Thamel, focuses on the player overcoming the tragic deaths of his grandmother and his girlfriend, who had passed away within six hours of each other.
October 2nd, 2012: In an interview with ESPN for “College GameDay,” Te’o said Kekua’s last words to him were “I love you.”
November 23rd, 2012: Te’o meets Ronaiah Tuiasosopo, the alleged ring leader of the hoax, for the very first time, presumably without being aware of his involvement with Kekua.
December 6th, 2012: Te’o receives a phone call from the supposedly deceased Kekua, informing Te’o that she had faked her death in order to elude drug dealers.
December 8th, 2012: In a scrum with reporters ahead of the Heisman Trophy ceremony, Te’o says, “I don’t like cancer at all. I lost both my grandparents and my girlfriend to cancer.” He finishes second in the award voting to Texas A&M freshman quarterback Johnny Manziel.
December 26th, 2012: Te’o informs Notre Dame of the possibility that he has been fooled into believing that Kekua was real, when she actually was not.
January 2nd, 2013: Notre Dame hires private investigators to look into the situation. The outside organization spends the next two days researching electronic databases to come to the conclusion that Kekua did not exist.
January 6th, 2013: Te’o is sent photos from his hotel lobby by people associated with Tuiasosopo, while he was in his room the night before the National Championship game in Miami. He receives a telephone call from this group informing him that they were waiting for Kekua, and asking if she was with him. He hangs up.
January 7th, 2013: Alabama defeats Notre Dame by the score of 42-14 in the BCS National Championship Game.
January 10th, 2013: Tom Condon, from Creative Artists Agency, who advise Te’o, informs ESPN that there is a situation with the linebacker’s girlfriend, but he does not go into detail.
January 11th, 2013: A two-paragraph email from an anonymous tipster is received by Deadspin staff. Timothy Burke and Jack Dickey spend the next five days collecting evidence on the existence/non-existence of Kekua, and shaping their investigative report.
January 16th, 2013: Deadspin publishes a story entitled, Manti Te’o’s Dead Girlfriend, The Most Heartbreaking And Inspirational Story Of The College Football Season, Is A Hoax. Notre Dame responds in a matter of hours, first releasing a statement expressing that they were aware of the situation, and then holding a press conference where they suggest that Te’o was duped by the hoax, and certainly not a perpetrator. Te’o releases his own statement confirming what the university is saying. Tuiasosopo, whom Deadspin identifies as being the perpetrator of the hoax, apologizes to Te’o via direct message on Twitter.
January 17th, 2013: ESPN sends Jeremy Schaap and Sean Fitzgerald to Bradenton, Florida to interview Te’o on camera. Te’o's representatives shut this idea down.
January 18th, 2013: Schapp interviews Te’o only after agreeing to several ground rules put in place by the football player’s public relations expert, Matthew Hiltzik. These include no video cameras, limited photographs, and two minutes of audio recording. During the question and answer period, Te’o claims that it was Tuiasosopo behind the hoax. He reveals the direct messages that Tuiasosopo sent him two days before the interview.
January 19th, 2013: Following the interview, Schapp sends live updates to ESPN from location. He describes Te’o as being credulous. Later in the day, a partial transcript is made available.
January 23rd, 2013: In a television interview with Katie Couric (who also employs Hiltzik), Te’o reveals that he briefly lied about Kekua after discovering she never existed. He continues to claim that he had no part in perpetrating the hoax.
Now take that and multiply it by 50