Did 9News' bizarre Willie Clark interview justify its existence?

Last night, 9News scored a mighty strange scoop. The station aired an interview by investigator Paula Woodward with Willie Clark, the man charged with murdering Denver Broncos cornerback Darrent Williams on New Years Day 2007, as well as Kalonniann Clark, who was killed in December 2006 shortly before she was...

By Michael Roberts

December 12, 2008

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Last night, 9News scored a mighty strange scoop. The station aired an interview by investigator Paula Woodward with Willie Clark, the man charged with murdering Denver Broncos cornerback Darrent Williams on New Years Day 2007, as well as Kalonniann Clark, who was killed in December 2006 shortly before she was scheduled to testify in an attemped murder trial. But rather than discussing any of that, Clark rambled semi-coherently about his innocence in another matter -- an accusation that he'd hidden a makeshift shank made from an orange plastic spoon in his cell. The only spoon he'd been given was white, he insisted.

I wish 9News' promotions had done a better job of letting viewers know in advance that Clark had refused to discuss the most important topics. But after watching the presentation, I don't fault the outlet for devoting two minutes of airtime to it. The segment makes it clear that Clark is a twisted, combustible piece of work. And if he's capable of working himself into a frenzy over, well, Spoongate, couldn't he have done likewise in the cases of Darrent Williams and Kalonniann Clark?

Watch the video below and come to your own conclusions. -- Michael Roberts

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Michael Roberts began his career with Westword in 1990 as music editor. In 1999, he took on a new role, full-time media reporter, as author of a column called The Message. In 2008, he became the lead writer for Westword's news blog, The Latest Word, a position he held until January 2023. Michael continues to freelance for Westword, covering everything from business to sports and the media; he also contributes to Jazziz, a national music magazine. He holds a bachelor's degree from what is now Colorado Mesa University and master's degrees from the University of California, Los Angeles, and Northwestern University.

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