Introducing a gushing interview with HBO Girls star Lena Dunham aired on Friday's NBC Today, co-host Savannah Guthrie eagerly proclaimed: "You know, to call her the voice of her generation might actually be underselling her abilities. At just 27 years old, she isn't just starring in the hit HBO show Girls,
she created it, writes it, produces it, and she also directs it. And
now she can add something else to that impressive resume, she'll be the
host of Saturday Night Live this weekend." [Listen to the audio [1]]
In 2013, Dunham compared Republicans to Nazis [2] while discussing a new character in the show's second season. In 2012, Dunham did an ad for President Obama's re-election [3] campaign in which she compared voting for him to someone losing their virginity.
Guthrie managed to skip those controversial aspects of Dunham's
"impressive resume," but did find time to beg to join the Girls cast: "I feel like I should confess to you that I've kind of imagined being, you know, the fifth girl. And
you're probably thinking, 'You seem really boring and straightforward, I
don't really see a role for you in the show.' I took the liberty of
creating some story boards to just pitch my character."
Guthrie then proceeded to show several photoshopped images of herself in scenes from the racy HBO series.
Dunham responded: "I love it. Beautifully done, Savannah. I'll take it
back to the writers room and we'll give it serious consideration."
Guthrie replied: "That feels like a blow-off." Dunham explained: "It's
not a blow-off, I'm just – honestly, I'm not sure whether you're willing
to show nipple." Guthrie assured her: "You know what? Spoiler alert,
I'm not."
Guthrie wrapped up the exchange: "Lena, thank you so much. I'm a huge fan. I'm so happy you took the time."
— Kyle Drennen is Senior News Analyst at the Media Research Center. Follow Kyle Drennen on Twitter. [4]