Talking Dateline: True Crime, True Impact

Summary

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Podcast Summary: Dateline NBC – Talking Dateline: True Crime, True Impact

Air Date: December 3, 2025
Recorded Live at the Pinnacle, Nashville, September 28
Moderators: Annette O’Toole and Michael McKean
Dateline Panel: Lester Holt, Andrea Canning, Keith Morrison, Josh Mankiewicz, Dennis Murphy, Blaine (not all segments specify the speaker)

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Overview

In this unique “Talking Dateline” episode, the beloved Dateline correspondents leave behind the usual episode breakdown to give listeners rare, behind-the-scenes insights into their work. In front of a live audience, actors and Dateline super-fans Annette O’Toole and Michael McKean lead a candid, often humorous conversation that covers the emotional impact of true crime, memorable interviews, life on the road, the art of storytelling vs. journalism, and personal stories the correspondents will never forget.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

The Nature of Dateline: Journalism vs. Storytelling

• Dennis Murphy (03:26):
  “Every news reporter is also a storyteller... But this is also the news business... When it's ready, it runs. I don’t want to run a week after somebody else, after you guys already know how it comes out. So, I mean, we are in the news business, and we want to be right and we want to be first.”
• Josh Mankiewicz (04:14):
  “Forget about it. We're telling you, it's not about the murder. It's about the marriage. It's about the people involved. How did somebody end up dead on the kitchen floor? That's our story... I think that's why Dateline distinguishes itself from some of the other shows. It's about the people.”
• Lester Holt (04:47):
  “There is a difference in the pace. You know, a nightly news story... you had hours to put it together. These programs, we have months sometimes... We’re still journalists... but it's just a way that people can step inside the shoes of the people we're covering.”

Why Does Dateline Resonate With Audiences?

• Dennis Murphy (06:43):
  “There aren't a lot of things on television that have been on for as long as we have. So we gotta be doing something right... I did not see true crime taking off when Dateline started... And then I did one and then I was like, all right. That was a better experience than I thought... I’m still in touch with that mom from the first story.”
• Keith Morrison (07:24):
  “There’s something really foundational about human beings... We all, from the time we’re very small children, need to know where the dark places are... These are explorations of human nature which are far more illuminating... than almost any other kind of news reporting.”

Interviewing Murderers and Law Enforcement

• Keith Morrison & Andrea Canning (11:04 – 11:34):
  Detectives often become emotional in interviews, as the cases "go home with them." Andrea shares a personal anecdote about a detective bringing roses to a victim’s grave after solving a 25-year case.
• Andrea Canning (10:34):
  “We love highlighting their good work. And on the flip side, we also sometimes have to highlight bad work, too. You know, it’s not always perfect.”

The Archetype of Killers & Unrealistic Expectations

• Dennis Murphy (08:45):
  “It is astonishing to see what people are capable of with someone who they once loved... They're thinking only about themselves and their own needs.”
• Panel (09:15–09:51):
  Discussion on narcissism and killers’ belief they'll outsmart the system, plus reminders about modern forensics and ubiquitous surveillance.

Pushback From Law Enforcement

• Keith Morrison (10:21):
  “If they haven’t finished with their work, generally speaking, they want to be able to do what they need to do first. And then they're usually pretty happy to [participate].”
• Andrea Canning (10:34):
  Emphasis on showing law enforcement as real people with emotional stakes and vulnerabilities.

Stories With Surprising Verdicts

• Keith Morrison (11:51):
  “Yes, yes. I’ve got quite a number of them, actually,” referencing cases with controversial outcomes.
• Dennis Murphy (12:09):
  “There are cases in which I think, I’m not sure what happened, but I couldn’t have voted to convict on this. But those are rare.”

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Memorable Quotes & Moments

Dateline Correspondents’ Dream Cases

• Josh Mankiewicz (15:11):
  “In my mind, no question. I would go to Fall River, Massachusetts, and meet Lizzie Borden.”
• Dennis Murphy (15:43):
  “I'd go to Dallas and find out who was waiting for John Kennedy.”

The Infamous O.J. Simpson Voicemail (16:05–18:43)

• Dennis Murphy recounting Josh’s story:
  “My first voicemail begins, and it's clearly him. It begins, ‘Josh MANKIEWICZ, this is O.J. simpson, and you're a son of a bitch.’... For, like, a year, Josh Manka was, this is O.J. simpson, you’re a son of a bitch.”

Life on the Road & Family Balance

• Andrea Canning (20:16):
  “I have a nanny who comes during the day. But you leave. You leave your home. And my husband is home at night.”
• Dell Technologies Announcer 2 / Correspondent (20:39):
  “It takes a village. It really takes a village. Especially since we travel as much as we do.”
• Keith Morrison (21:39):
  “It’s one of the great perks of what we do, actually, is we get to see the country probably like nobody else does and the world does.”

SNL and Popularity

• Keith Morrison (22:18):
  Bill Hader’s impression is discussed warmly: “He was really nervous to meet me... Bill Hader is a delightful [man].”

Favorite Episodes (22:53)

• Dennis Murphy:
  “You saw a clip of it, Andrea, with the guy who’s... Nicholas Rossi. He’s a character.”
• Panel:
  The Lori Vallow interview is cited as particularly memorable and strange.

Emotional Toll of True Crime Storytelling

• Keith Morrison (25:47):
  “Yes, all the time. Every single time.” (Asked if it ever feels too much speaking with victims' families.)
• Josh Mankiewicz (25:49–25:57):
  “Hardest thing we do... I never lose sight of the fact that this show is not coming from a writer's room... These are real life people who've had the worst experience in their lives.”
• Dell Technologies Announcer 2 / Correspondent (26:09):
  “It's trust. And I'm really struck by that trust.... that amount of trust isn't lost on any of us.”
• Dennis Murphy (27:21):
  “When our story airs, we go on to the next one. But they're never getting over this, the people that we talked with.”

Stories That Stick With Them

• Lester Holt (28:08):
  “I spent two and a half days in prison at Angola Maximum security prison... it was a story really about mass incarceration... that sticks with you.”
• Interactions with Viewers and Subjects:
  Anecdotes about murderers in prison being mad at them; Keith quips, “It's quite an honor. Yeah, that was... I knew right away who that was when he said that. And he's right where he should be.”

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Memorable Segments & Timestamps

• Journalist vs. Storyteller? — 03:16–05:47
• Jealousy Over Stories, Following Cases for Years — 05:51–06:28
• Why We Love True Crime, Human Nature — 06:43–08:02
• The Psychology of Killers, Narcissism — 08:45–09:51
• Law Enforcement Relations — 10:00–11:34
• Controversial Verdicts — 11:37–12:36
• Dream Historical Cases — 14:30–15:57
• The O.J. Simpson Voicemail Anecdote — 16:05–18:43
• Work-Life Balance, Travel Anecdotes — 19:29–21:32
• Effect of SNL and Popularity — 22:06–22:18
• Favorite Episodes That Aren’t Their Own — 22:36–23:39
• Emotional Toll & Victims’ Families — 25:47–27:31
• The Stories That Linger — 28:04–29:13

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Closing Reflections

The correspondents display a candid camaraderie and deep respect for the emotional gravity of their work. They grapple with the heartbreak of covering tragedies, the ethical responsibility of representing victims faithfully, and the unexpected ways their stories have impacted both themselves and their viewers. Humor and humility shine through, as does their passion for truth, storytelling, and the unique Dateline audience.

Keith Morrison (25:47):
“Yes, all the time. Every single time.”

Josh Mankiewicz (25:56):
“These are real life people who've had the worst experience in their lives. And we come knocking on the door... and we want you to sit down and tell us the worst thing that ever happened to you.”

The live setting and audience Q&A showcase the human stories behind the show and the broad reach of Dateline, making this episode a treat for longtime fans and those newly intrigued by the world of true crime journalism.

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Transcript

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[Keith Morrison]

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[Andrea Canning]

Have a special edition of Talking DATELINE for you this week. Instead of talking about a particular episode, we wanted to play you a conversation from our first ever live event. On September 28, thousands of Dateline fans gathered at the Pinnacle, a music venue in Nashville. Lester, Keith, Josh, Blaine, Dennis and I answered questions about what it's like being DATELINE correspondents, interviewing murderers, victims, families and detectives. We got personal, too, reflecting on life on the road and the stories that have stuck with us long after an episode has aired. The hosts who asked us the questions call themselves DATELINE devotees, but you know them better as actors and real life husband and wife duo Annette O' Toole from Virgin river and Michael McKean of Better Call Saul and the Spinal Tap movies. Before they got down to the questions, they played a montage of some memorable DATELINE moments. Here's talking DATELINE from Nashville.

[Michael McKean]

Without any further ado, we would like to meet the dream team that makes DATELINE dateline. Would you like that?

[Andrea Canning]

All right.

[Josh Mankiewicz]

All right.

[Andrea Canning]

Here we go.

[Michael McKean]

Now, you've all met some extraordinary people over the years.

[Annette O'Toole]

Yes.

[Michael McKean]

Confronting killers, consoling family members.

[Annette O'Toole]

Let's take a look.

[Lester Holt]

How do you want us to think of and remember Anton as a good.

[Keith Morrison]

Child, a good son, a good citizen? Ed, I don't give a sweet flying about that. I don't care.

[Josh Mankiewicz]

I kind of care.

[Keith Morrison]

Well, you do care that the family.

[Josh Mankiewicz]

Has a chance to get some closure.

[Keith Morrison]

That they have been begging you for? They don't know where their child is.

[Josh Mankiewicz]

Do you believe Jennifer is alive?

[Dennis Murphy]

I do.

[Josh Mankiewicz]

Against all circumstantial evidence or common understanding.

[Dennis Murphy]

I'd like not to discuss this.

[Andrea Canning]

What do you say to people who say These are crocodile tears. He's putting on a show. This is all an actual.

[Michael McKean]

Oh, Eco.

[Dennis Murphy]

Andrea, That's a low blow. That's a right low blow. If you had nothing to do with this, if you're innocent, I'm done.

[Lester Holt]

We're done.

[Josh Mankiewicz]

We're done not doing this.

[Dennis Murphy]

Okay?

[Keith Morrison]

You. You. You arrogant, you. How's that?

[Michael McKean]

We're going to want to hear more about that in a minute.

[Keith Morrison]

Josh.

[Michael McKean]

I think primarily we would like to know. I would like to know one thing. Do you consider yourselves news reporters or are you storytellers?

[Dennis Murphy]

Every news reporter is also a storyteller. I mean, this is absolutely about the storytelling.

[Lester Holt]

Sure.

[Dennis Murphy]

But this is also the news business. You know, it's why there's been an enormous amount of. Of discussion on social that I've seen about why we and one of our competitors run the same story on the same day. And the answer is, I don't want to get beat like we're. When it's ready, it runs. I don't want to run a week after somebody else, after you guys already know how it comes out. So, I mean, we are in the news business, and we want to be right and we want to be first.

[Keith Morrison]

Yeah.

[Dennis Murphy]

And we want to tell a story that you guys pay attention to, which, based on your reactions to that video, you clearly do also, by the way, I thought that guy was going to kick my ass.

[Josh Mankiewicz]

Michael. I, for one, feel more of a storyteller. I remember years ago, we were in a production meeting, we were screening one of our stories, must be back 20 years ago. And with this long in the weeds discussion of when are we going to introduce the stuff about the blood evidence and the DNA and what part of the story? And I said, guys, forget about it. We're telling you, it's not about the murder. It's about the marriage. It's about the people involved. How did somebody end up dead on the kitchen floor? That's our story, not what the crime scene guys put together. We certainly need all that. But I think that's why Dateline distinguishes itself from some of the other shows. It's about the people.

[Lester Holt]

I've spoke about both worlds for quite a while doing Nightly News and Dateline, and I'm full time at Dateline, having fun, by the way, I should point out. But there is a difference in the pace. You know, a nightly news story, a typical, you know, it was maybe a couple of minutes. You had hours to put it together. These programs, we have months sometimes to put together. And so you can really create a Storytelling element. We're still journalists, as Josh points out, we're still news people, but it's just a way that people can step inside the shoes of the people we're covering.

[Keith Morrison]

Right.

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But also to that point, Lester, I think that, you know, I always say that I have been a Dateline viewer longer than I've been a Dateline correspondent. And so it's been very interesting to kind of peel back the curtain and look at our fact checking process. I mean, the same thing that we would do on a nightly news. To your question about are we, you know, news reporters or storytellers? I mean, it is an extensive fact finding process. We have a tremendous team that makes sure every detail is correct. All of our facts are buttoned up. And that is a very big backbone of what we do.

[Annette O'Toole]

Do you ever fight over stories like who's gonna get what among?

[Josh Mankiewicz]

Among ourselves?

[Andrea Canning]

Yeah, I would say just more jealousy. I can't believe you got that story. I wanted that story. But no, we don't fight over them.

[Michael McKean]

Have you ever seen a story break in the news and say, I want that one? I'm thinking of the Gilgo Beach, Long island movie. Are you working on that?

[Andrea Canning]

Yeah, I was on that story from.

[Michael McKean]

Like, many, many when it was the missing girl story.

[Keith Morrison]

Yeah, yeah.

[Annette O'Toole]

Before we knew it was Gilgo Beach.

[Keith Morrison]

A lot of these stories we'll follow for 3, 4, 5, 10 years or more before we are eventually able to put them on the air. Because develop and develop, develop like I've.

[Andrea Canning]

Had multiple pregnancies on the same show.

[Lester Holt]

That's a fearsome explanation. Another session.

[Annette O'Toole]

Why do you think this show resonates with so many people?

[Dennis Murphy]

I think it's a lot of things. I mean, I think we've figured out how to tell a story in a way that you guys appreciate and find captivating, which is, you know, no small achievement after all these years. There aren't a lot of things on television that have been on for as long as we have. So we gotta be doing something right. I've said this before. I did not see true crime taken off when Dateline started. Said to me, we want to do hour long murders. This was in like 2005, 2006. I was like, really? Like, really? Okay. And then I did one and then I was like, all right. That was a better experience than I thought it was going to be. And I'm still in touch with that mom from the first story. So these stories resonate with people.

[Josh Mankiewicz]

They do.

[Keith Morrison]

And, you know, there's something really foundational about human Beings and that we all, from the time we're very small children, we need to know where the dark places are, and we need to be able to keep ourselves safe from the dark places and know what's under the bed. And a lot of these stories have to do with that very topic and the need to be aware of what people are capable of, the need to be aware of what they're also capable of. On the positive side, these are explorations of human nature which are far more illuminating to me anyway than almost any other kind of news reporting.

[Michael McKean]

Have you achieved any kind of insight into the overriding question that we always wind up asking ourselves as we watch every week, as we do, we look at each other and we go, how could he do that? How could they? How could.

[Josh Mankiewicz]

Why didn't they just get a divorce?

[Michael McKean]

Right, yes. Well, what is there about that particular person's ego that puts him at the center of the universe and able to erase anything in his way? Is there any kind of person you've looked into a lot of. A lot of pairs of. A lot of dark eyes. Have you come across anything? I mean, Jack Olson had these theories about the extra Y chromosome which is found in murderers, but nobody really knows why and how they can do it. Any insights save us?

[Dennis Murphy]

I mean, I wish I could tell you that there is a type, but I mean, it is. And you guys know this. I mean, it is astonishing to see what people are capable of with someone who they once loved, someone who might be currently the parent of their children, and they're thinking only about themselves and their own needs. I mean, you think you're gonna take your kid's other parent and they're gonna be fine. Like, do you think about that?

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But I think the thing is that so many people think that they're going to get away with it. They think that they've been able to outsmart police, outsmart the system, outs people who may have been watching. So I think that narcissism does play a large role. They're so confident in whatever it is that they've pulled off that they really think they're going to get away with it. And the lies that they've told and.

[Lester Holt]

They forget there's a camera everywhere. It's remarkable. Even when I was just in the newsroom at Nightly News, the story would come across. I'm like, does this person not watch Dateline? Is it possible, really?

[Josh Mankiewicz]

Do the phone, leave it at home?

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Or if you delete something from your phone, it doesn't go away, go back, they'll still get it.

[Dennis Murphy]

The days when you could commit a crime in Texas and drive to Oklahoma and that was the end of it. Those days are over, long time ago.

[Michael McKean]

Do you ever get pushback from law enforcement? I mean, I'd say 95% of the time you're dealing with very competent law enforcement and people who become obsessed long after their retirement with a certain case. But on the moment is there. Do you ever feel like they're telling you you're intruding, they're telling you that your story is irrelevant.

[Keith Morrison]

If they haven't finished with their work, generally speaking, they want to be able to do what they need to do first. And then they're usually pretty happy to.

[Dennis Murphy]

Do when we tell them that this isn't going to air until they're done. That generally makes them a little more cooperative.

[Andrea Canning]

And we love highlighting their good work. And on the flip side, we also sometimes have to highlight bad work, too. You know, it's not always perfect.

[Dell Technologies Announcer 2]

I think also sometimes, I mean, we get to show them as people. We get to show law enforcement detectives as people, bring out some of the emotions that they bring to the case, show how these cases oftentimes go home with them. Why there's this one that they just couldn't let go. And so I think it also kind of, you know, we can see them through a prism. It shows a different side of law enforcement than you might get on your nightly news.

[Keith Morrison]

As a percentage of the number of people who become emotional and cry during an interview, detectives rank high.

[Andrea Canning]

Oh, they cry all the time, the detective. No emotions on their faces.

[Keith Morrison]

And understandably so because they care about them so deeply.

[Andrea Canning]

I did one story where the Detective, it was 25 years and he was retired, and I said, what did you do when you found out that they finally caught the killer? And he said, I went and bought a rose and some roses. I went to the family, I gave them some roses, and then I went to her grave and put the roses on her grave.

[Annette O'Toole]

Wow.

[Andrea Canning]

This is from a detective.

[Michael McKean]

There are those rare cases that kind of end on a verdict where we're looking at each other going, what the hell is going on here? Have you ever had any of those where you really thought they got it wrong and there's nothing you can do about it?

[Keith Morrison]

Yes, yes. I've got quite a number of them, actually.

[Josh Mankiewicz]

I think we all have a few. We think the jury got it wrong, but we won't tell you. Right. Yeah.

[Michael McKean]

Well, I found that you don't come out and say it, but we're feeling it at home. And we're feeling. You feel it too.

[Keith Morrison]

You lay it all out and then people will conceive for themselves what they ought to say.

[Dennis Murphy]

There are cases in which I think, I'm not sure what happened, but I couldn't have voted to convict on this. But those are rare usually. I mean, look, prosecutors, by the time they go into a courtroom, the deck is almost always very heavily stacked in their favor. And that's what they all do. That's why, you know, when it comes to murder cases, prosecutors have records like 23 and 1. I mean, they almost always have the cards before they go in there.

[Andrea Canning]

When we come back, we answer some more questions from Michael and Annette and also take a few from the audience. Plus, Josh tells us about the time he got a voicemail from none other than OJ Simpson. VRBO Last minute deals make chasing fresh mountain powder Incredibly Easy with thousands of homes close to the slopes, you can easily get epic Pow freshies, first tracks and more. No need for months of planning. In fact, you can't even plan. Pow Pow is on its own schedule. Thankfully somewhere in the world it's always snowing. All you have to do is use the last minute filter on the app to book a last minute deal on a slope side private rental home. Book [e-mail] if you're the purchasing manager.

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[Annette O'Toole]

So we have some questions for all of you, some things that Mikey and I want to know.

[Michael McKean]

You're going to start right there was a show a long Long time ago on tv it was called you are There, and it was hosted by Walter Cronkite. There were no gags. He would magically interview Brutus right before he stabs Julius Caesar. He would interview Napoleon right before they attacked Russia. They would go into these moments of history and they would cover them like a news story. And he would be there and first person interviewing the people involved. Is there any moment in history that you'd love to send a Dateline crew to?

[Josh Mankiewicz]

In my mind, no question. I would go to Fall River, Massachusetts, and meet Lizzie Borden.

[Michael McKean]

Ah, Lizzie Borden.

[Josh Mankiewicz]

Do you remember Lizzie Borden? Took an axe. You can all say that, right? Well, she went to trial and there's immaculate records of the trial, all the testimony. It was a terrific book. A few years back, she was acquitted. She was found not guilty.

[Dell Technologies Announcer 2]

Wow.

[Josh Mankiewicz]

But do you think she did a great Dateline story?

[Michael McKean]

Do you think she did it, or do you think Dateline could have figured it out?

[Josh Mankiewicz]

I think they couldn't prove it. And that's the story we have all the time, right? Sure.

[Keith Morrison]

Yeah. Yeah, yeah.

[Dennis Murphy]

I'd go to Dallas and find out who was waiting for John Kennedy.

[Lester Holt]

Yeah.

[Annette O'Toole]

Anybody else have a. Have a history, murder special murder they'd like to cover?

[Andrea Canning]

Should we go all the way back to JonBenet?

[Michael McKean]

JonBenet Ramsey.

[Annette O'Toole]

Well, that's so recent.

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O.J.

[Michael McKean]

Martin Luther King, kind of O.J. kind of settled history.

[Andrea Canning]

I think someone might have been there for that one.

[Dennis Murphy]

He might have done enough on that. I'll tell you now that we're talking about O.J. you guys may not remember this. In between the criminal trial where he was acquitted and the civil trial where he got that big judgment, he was just in LA and kind of like living his life. And one of the things that happened then, which probably nobody remembers, he was playing golf and he's finished his round, and he's. I think he played alone or with some people he just met there. And he's taken off his golf shoes, and a guy walks up to him with a gun and says, give me your money. And OJ Says to him, you watch the news?

[Keith Morrison]

You do? I am.

[Dennis Murphy]

I spent it all on, like, my criminal defense. And the guy's like, you're lying. Give me your money. This is all Simpson's telling of the story. And Simpson grabs the gun and they struggle for a second, and the guy runs away. He jumps in his car, he drives off. Simpson jumps into his car and follows him and calls 911 and says to the 911 operator.

[Keith Morrison]

Wow.

[Dennis Murphy]

This is O.J. simpson. I'm in my white Bronco. I'm not making any of this up. And I'm following a guy who's trying to kill me. And the 911 operator says, I'm sorry again. And then they say what they say to everybody in that situation, which is, give us a description of the car, pull over, we'll take over. But they don't find the guy, and he vanishes. So we do the story on Dateline. It was on a Sunday, back when we had a Sunday show, and it wasn't the whole show. It was like seven or eight minutes long. And we had some. We had his story. He had spoken to somebody. Not us, but he'd spoken to somebody. So I didn't actually talk with him. But so we do the story. And because it's not exactly the most trustworthy, complaining witness in the history of the criminal justice system, I attributed everything he said. I was like, simpson claims the man pulled a gun. And Simpson says they then struggled over the gun. And Simpson says the guy then ran away. So the next morning, I come into work after this thing has aired, and I got voicemail on my phone. Back then, you couldn't get it remotely because it was like the dark ages. And my first voicemail begins, and it's clearly him. It begins, josh MANKIEWICZ, this is O.J. simpson, and you're a son of a bitch.

[Keith Morrison]

Wow.

[Dennis Murphy]

And then he goes on ranting at me for sounding in my store as if I didn't believe him. Why would anyone not believe him? And then voicemail cuts him off, and he calls back and he leaves another message. And about halfway through the other message, he's lost his venom. He's like, anyway, just wanted to call, you know, goodbye. But for, like, a year, Josh Manka was, this is O.J. simpson. You're a son of a bitch. I played that for everybody that came in the office like a moron. I didn't save it. Cause now it's like the ringtone or something, right? Eventually, it went away. Yeah.

[Annette O'Toole]

Oh, my God.

[Keith Morrison]

There you go.

[Annette O'Toole]

Well, I have a very silly question for the ladies. You always look so fantastic on the show. I'm just wondering, who does your clothes? Do you do them yourselves?

[Andrea Canning]

Just me.

[Josh Mankiewicz]

Just you.

[Dell Technologies Announcer 2]

I do my hair, my makeup, and my clothes.

[Lester Holt]

You do everything?

[Dell Technologies Announcer 2]

Everything.

[Dennis Murphy]

And you chew blame.

[Annette O'Toole]

You do it, too.

[Dell Technologies Announcer 2]

I do my own clothes, my hair, and my makeup. I do get a little bit of help, but honestly, it takes a lot of magic. Andrea and I were just talking about this with what, six kids? Between us, we're tired. Between us, you have the lion's share.

[Andrea Canning]

Well, we have eight.

[Dennis Murphy]

We have eight total.

[Dell Technologies Announcer 2]

A total of eight kids. Wow. We're tired a lot of the time, I guess. And so they're the magical bag things we put under our eyes. Give us more life and breathe more life into it.

[Annette O'Toole]

When you're working, like, who takes care of all these kids?

[Andrea Canning]

I have a nanny. I have a nanny who comes during the day. But you leave. You leave your home. And my husband is home at night. Yeah.

[Annette O'Toole]

From his job.

[Andrea Canning]

So he takes over when.

[Annette O'Toole]

And the kids are at what ages?

[Andrea Canning]

Mine are six to 16.

[Annette O'Toole]

Oh, my God.

[Dell Technologies Announcer 2]

And mine are four and one. Four years old. And one year old.

[Josh Mankiewicz]

What?

[Annette O'Toole]

So do you have to take them with you or what do you do?

[Dell Technologies Announcer 2]

No, the content isn't quite appropriate. They're a little too young. But I do nanny and my husband and we trade off. My mom comes in, like you just. It takes a village. It really takes a village. Especially since we travel as much as we do.

[Annette O'Toole]

And when you go to these places. Cause sometimes you go to really tiny little places. Do you just stay in a Motel 6? What do you do?

[Andrea Canning]

Oh, sometimes. Oh, yeah. It's, you know, it runs the gamut. Never know what you're gonna get and like eating.

[Annette O'Toole]

Because there must be just, like hamburgers and stuff.

[Andrea Canning]

Sometimes. Sometimes it's McDonald's, sometimes it's nothing. And then sometimes you might get a really nice meal.

[Dennis Murphy]

Yeah.

[Dell Technologies Announcer 2]

I will say that we get to see the most interesting corners of America, this job. I mean, places that you would not necessarily go. I went to North Dakota for the first time in my career.

[Andrea Canning]

Who's from North Dakota?

[Dell Technologies Announcer 2]

Shout out to North Dakota. So, I mean, some places that so many of us would not naturally go to, we get a chance to see. And not only see, but really get familiar with.

[Andrea Canning]

Right.

[Dell Technologies Announcer 2]

Because you're talking to people there. You're meeting people in diners. They know us and talk to us. So you get a really good taste of these places.

[Keith Morrison]

It's one of the great perks of what we do, actually, is we get to see the country probably like nobody else does and the world does.

[Andrea Canning]

And your face when you go there.

[Dell Technologies Announcer 2]

Right. Because.

[Annette O'Toole]

Do people really want to talk to you because of, you know, they know.

[Keith Morrison]

You from tv gradually, a little more. As time went by. Early on, not at all. You're completely anonymous, wandering around, looking around the corner.

[Andrea Canning]

SNL change device without the phone.

[Josh Mankiewicz]

Right?

[Michael McKean]

Yeah. Are you still in touch with Bill Hader?

[Josh Mankiewicz]

Yes.

[Keith Morrison]

You know, he's such a lovely, lovely man.

[Michael McKean]

He's awesome.

[Keith Morrison]

Bill Hader is a delightful.

[Josh Mankiewicz]

Yes, he is.

[Keith Morrison]

And we met one time and they filmed the occasion, and I was surprised by how shy he was and how sort of he was really nervous to meet me.

[Andrea Canning]

Oh, you're his hero, Keith. I mean, come on. Well, we're nervous for his idol, but.

[Annette O'Toole]

We'Re not the only ones with questions. Our audience here has some questions. And the first one comes from another Annette, Annette G. From Memphis, Tennessee. So I guess it's for each one of you. What is your favorite episode by someone other than you?

[Michael McKean]

Ooh, that's a good one.

[Dennis Murphy]

Oh, you saw a clip of it, Andrea, with the guy who's.

[Annette O'Toole]

Oh, crying and oxygen.

[Andrea Canning]

Nicholas Rossi. He's a character.

[Dennis Murphy]

Yeah. And he's. And in between then and now, he's been convicted.

[Andrea Canning]

He just got. He was convicted twice in Utah for rape.

[Michael McKean]

The payoff was so spectacular with that guy in the little mask and everything.

[Dennis Murphy]

Andrea.

[Andrea Canning]

That was a low blow. Andrea.

[Michael McKean]

Fantastic.

[Andrea Canning]

As a character.

[Michael McKean]

Anybody else want to.

[Dennis Murphy]

I like the Lori Vallow interview.

[Andrea Canning]

Oh, that was so good.

[Josh Mankiewicz]

Wow.

[Dennis Murphy]

So great.

[Lester Holt]

Just riveting.

[Keith Morrison]

Strangest day ever. Yep.

[Josh Mankiewicz]

Which one?

[Annette O'Toole]

Lori Valladay.

[Michael McKean]

Oh, my Lord.

[Keith Morrison]

That day I walked away thinking, I've ruined my career's over. This is the worst interview ever.

[Michael McKean]

Because you couldn't get an answer because.

[Keith Morrison]

She dodged and she jumped and she was a weaver, but she's a very unusual woman. Then it was Lori Vallow.

[Michael McKean]

Phenomenal.

[Keith Morrison]

And yet I would go back and do it again. It was. It was weirdly enjoyable and terrifying and awful at the same time.

[Andrea Canning]

Coming up, in the final part of our conversation with Michael and Annette, we discuss the emotional toll of the stories we tell and the stories we can't forget. What are you doing in a meeting? That could have been an email. Losing interest. Don't let it happen to your money, too. Vanguard's Cash plus account can't help you at work, but we can help with your savings. Find out how much interest you could [e-mail] cashplus offered by Vanguard Marketing Corporation member Finra and SIPC.

[Dell Technologies Announcer]

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[Andrea Canning]

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[Annette O'Toole]

When you speak with the victims families, is it ever too much? Do you ever feel like, I don't know if I can do this, I can't fake this?

[Keith Morrison]

Yes, all the time. Every single time.

[Josh Mankiewicz]

Hardest thing we do.

[Annette O'Toole]

Yeah, I would imagine so.

[Josh Mankiewicz]

And I never lose sight of the fact that this show is not coming from a writer's room.

[Keith Morrison]

Yeah.

[Josh Mankiewicz]

These are real life people who've had the worst experience in their lives. And we come knocking on the door, we've got our cameras and we want you to sit down and tell us the worst thing that ever happened to you.

[Annette O'Toole]

Why do you think they do? Why do they?

[Dell Technologies Announcer 2]

It's trust. And I'm really struck by that trust. I mean, I've taken to telling people when I interview them, either before or after, I'll say, I know that this is the most unnatural thing in the world. You're sitting down from me, somebody that you barely know, and talking about the worst moment in your lives. And that amount of trust isn't lost on any of us, I think. And so I really think that it sometimes takes opening yourself up, showing them that we're not robots, right, that we have emotions that we understand and we empathize. But it also speaks to the level of trust they have in each of us, but also the trust that they have in Dateline and what our show represents, what we stand for, and knowing that we are going to tell the story right and treat it with respect it deserves.

[Dennis Murphy]

And you know, I mean, unless it's a famous case, they might get a minute on their local news. This is a way of us to tell the audience not just how the person died, but how they also lived and who they were. And I think that does appeal to.

[Josh Mankiewicz]

Families and I think it becomes a cathartic experience for many of these People to sit down and talk with us long form because they've talked to police officers, but they just want this much information. They've talked to the DA office. We come in and say, tell us about your life, tell us about your.

[Keith Morrison]

Life and try to understand.

[Dennis Murphy]

And the thing you gotta remember, and I know that we all do remember this, is that, you know, when our story airs, we go on to the next one. But they're never getting over this, the people that we talked with.

[Andrea Canning]

And also we get the opportunity to be across from the killer, you know, where a lot of times these killers do not take the stand. So a prosecutor never gets a chance. They don't even talk to the police most of the time. So then.

[Dennis Murphy]

And so the only time they cross examined is by.

[Andrea Canning]

We get to cross examine them. And also, you know, it's kind of like for the family too, right? Because you're asking these really important questions to the person that took their loved one.

[Michael McKean]

What is your most memorable story that has stuck with you also? Do you keep in touch with any of the families? That's something I'm sort of curious.

[Dennis Murphy]

In my case, many of them, yeah.

[Lester Holt]

I spent two and a half days in prison at Angola Maximum security prison. And that sticks with you because it was a story really about mass incarceration. And when you meet someone who was sentenced to life and they're standing there and they're 86 years old still in prison, it's hard to see it through the same lens. But that was a compelling story. Scary on some levels because we had more freedom than I thought we'd have, perhaps behind bars.

[Dennis Murphy]

And when you were in there, you met a guy who was mad at me, right? I think we did, yeah, that's right.

[Annette O'Toole]

Everybody's mad at you.

[Lester Holt]

No, that's right.

[Andrea Canning]

We're sending killers everywhere.

[Lester Holt]

I'm walking through a cell block and this guy, he's got his hand outside the cell and he sees us walking by, he goes, hey, hey, hey. And he wanted to complain about your story. I can't remember what the story was about, but I'm like, I don't take requests here, you know.

[Keith Morrison]

It was undoubtedly a reasonable request.

[Dennis Murphy]

He's a murderer.

[Dell Technologies Announcer 2]

Of honor. Having him be mad, having people be so mad at you all the time, murderers, that is.

[Dennis Murphy]

Well, that's quite an honor. Yeah, that was. I know who that was. I knew right away who that was when he said that. And he's right where he should be.

[Annette O'Toole]

Well, we're lucky. It's an amazing show. You give us so much it's such a treat to get to be together. Who's going to be?

[Dennis Murphy]

Give it to him.

[Michael McKean]

Come on, give it to him.

[Josh Mankiewicz]

Thank you.

[Andrea Canning]

And thanks to you two for being here and for being your loyal viewers. That's it for talking Dateline this week. We had so much fun meeting everyone in Nashville and answering questions. Remember, if you have a question for us, you can send us a video on social media ainenbc, or you can leave your question in a voicemail at 212-413-5252. What are you doing in a meeting? That could have been an email. Losing interest. Don't let it happen to your money, too. Vanguard's Cash plus account can't help you at work, but we can help with your savings. Find out how much interest you could [e-mail] cashplus offered by Vanguard Marketing Corporation member FINRA and SIPC.