Larry King Live

==Format==

===Interview style===
Larry King mainly conducted interviews from the studio, but he also interviewed people on-site in the [[White House]], their [[prison]] cells, their homes, and other unique locations. Critics claimed that Larry King asked "soft" questions in comparison to other interviewers, which allowed him to reach guests who would be averse to interviewing on "tough" talk shows. His reputation for asking easy, open-ended questions made him attractive to important figures who wanted to state their position while avoiding being challenged on contentious topics.<ref name=NYT120110>{{cite news |last=Barry |first=Ellen |title=Blunt and Blustery, Putin Responds to State Department Cables on Russia |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/02/world/europe/02putin.html |newspaper=[[The New York Times]] |date=December 1, 2010 |access-date=December 3, 2010}}</ref> When interviewed on ''[[Late Night with Conan O'Brien]],<ref>''Late Night With Conan O'Brien''; February 20, 2009</ref>'' King said that the secret to a good interview is to get the guest to talk about him- or herself, and to put oneself in the background pool.

A 1996 interview in ''[[The Washington Post]]''<ref name=":0">{{Cite news|last=Powers|first=William|date=March 25, 1996|title=WINNING AT SOFTBALL|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/1996/03/25/winning-at-softball/4b5d8217-ee32-443b-a62b-a7095a83170e/|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]}}</ref> saw King note that he sometimes slips hard questions in between softballs. King prefers one-sentence questions. In interviews, King has also proclaimed that he prepares as little as possible for each program, does not read the books of the authors he interviews,<ref name=91int>{{cite web|url=http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/1991-06-30/features/9101230817_1_larry-king-radio-show-previous-show/2 |title=The Man Who Can't Stop Talking Starting In South Florida, Larry King Has Been Live And On The Air For More Than 30 Years. On Radio And Tv, When The King Of Talk Speaks, The World Listens.|work=Sun Sentinel |date=June 30, 1991 |first=Bernard |last=McCormick |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303222855/http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/1991-06-30/features/9101230817_1_larry-king-radio-show-previous-show/2|archive-date=March 3, 2016}}</ref> and admitted that the show was not journalism but "[[infotainment]]". He said that he tries to project an image of earnestness and sincerity in each interview, and the format of the show (King in suspenders instead of suit and tie, sitting directly next to the guest) reinforces that.

In response to {{" '}}softball' questions" accusations, King says, "I've never understood that. All I've tried to do is ask the best questions I could think of, listen to the answers, and then follow up. I've never not followed up. I don't attack anybody – that's not my style – but I follow up. I've asked people who say this, 'What's a softball question?' They'll say, 'You say to some movie star, what's your next project?' To me, that's not a softball. To me, that's interesting – what are you doing next?"<ref name=":0" />

===Call-ins===
King accepted [[call-in]] questions on some nights. Callers were identified only by city and state/province, and generally not by name. Occasionally, surprise guests [[telephone]]d the show and comment, like [[governor]]s, [[Royal family|royalty]], and [[celebrities]]. At times, [[prank call]]s came in.

===Frequent topics===
During major election coverage, the program may center on political analysis and commentary, as the show's prime time airing generally coincides with the closing of polls in many states. Larry King would air generally near the end of each hour with various guests during election coverage while hosting a panel at the end of the night which is midnight eastern the usual time slot for the show's daily repeat outside of live election coverage.

One of King's recurring topics is the [[paranormal]]. A frequent guest is [[John Edward]] of the popular television show ''[[John Edward|Crossing Over]] with John Edward''. Edward comes on the show and gives callers a free chance to supposedly communicate, via him, with their dead loved ones. King also had alleged psychics such as [[Sylvia Browne]] and [[James Van Praagh]] on from time to time to do readings and discuss the future. King sometimes allows skeptics such as [[James Randi]] to debate the psychics. In an April 2005 episode, King hosted a panel discussion regarding [[Evangelicalism|Evangelical]], [[Catholic]], [[Jewish]], [[Muslim]], and [[atheist]] views on the [[afterlife]]. King has also had topics about UFOs and Extraterrestrials where he goes on to pit them one against the other, believers views on the [[afterlife]] against skeptics.

King is also frequently accused of pandering to [[Sensationalism|sensationalist]] news stories; for instance, the death of [[Anna Nicole Smith]] took up much of King's shows after the event, causing the cancellation of numerous guests and interviews that were already scheduled, most notably [[Christopher Hitchens]], who had intended to discuss the Iraq situation.

After the death of a prominent celebrity, King would either replay a recent program featuring said celebrity (for instance, after actor [[Don Knotts]]' death in 2006 King replayed the interview with Knotts and [[Andy Griffith]] taken several months before) or will bring on family members and close confidantes to the deceased to reminisce on the departed's life.

===Set design===
Each studio set features an identical colored-dot map of the world in the background and one of King's trademarks, a vintage [[RCA]] microphone (as seen in the title card), on the desk. The microphone is a [[theatrical properties|prop]],<ref>{{cite web|last1=Bauder|first1=David|title=Larry King exits CNN after 25 years|url=http://www.today.com/id/40707574/ns/today-today_entertainment/t/larry-king-exits-cnn-after-years/#.VDoYFUu2_Io|publisher=Today}}</ref> as King and his guests use [[lapel microphone]]s.