The Jamie Kern Lima Show

Norah O’Donnell’s First EVER Podcast Interview! Life-Changing Lessons & How Success Leaves Clues!

February 17, 2026

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  • Norah O’Donnell's new book, *We the Women: The Hidden Heroes Who Shaped America*, aims to shine a spotlight on untold American heroines whose stories were historically overlooked, with only 15% of history taught in schools focusing on women's achievements. 
  • Rejection is a universal experience for successful women, as evidenced by figures like Mary Catherine Goddard and Elizabeth Blackwell, but perseverance and a strong support system are crucial for turning setbacks into redirection. 
  • Personal connection, often demonstrated through handwritten notes, remains a powerful tool for building trust, securing opportunities (like Norah O'Donnell's interview with Pope Francis), and showing appreciation. 
  • The core lesson Norah O'Donnell hopes to instill in her children is the importance of good manners and good behavior, emphasizing kindness and taking care of one another. 
  • Norah O'Donnell channels her fear of failure into intense preparation, believing that preparation builds confidence, which ultimately equals success. 
  • The greatest divide currently facing the country is not left versus right, but rather the growing class struggle exacerbated by financial inequality and the resulting polarization. 

Segments

Current State of the Country
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(00:00:00)
  • Key Takeaway: Leadership changes at CBS have created challenges and fear regarding the future, prompting questions about the protection of the First Amendment and freedom of the press.
  • Summary: Recent leadership changes at CBS have been challenging, leading to fear about the future among staff. The conversation touched upon the scrutiny facing CBS currently. A core concern raised was the continued protection of the First Amendment and freedom of the press.
Norah O’Donnell’s Career Highlights
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(00:01:24)
  • Key Takeaway: Norah O’Donnell is one of only three women to solo anchor the primetime evening network news, having interviewed every living U.S. President.
  • Summary: Norah O’Donnell has interviewed every living U.S. President, including a recent viral interview with the current President. She is recognized as one of only three women in history to solo anchor the primetime evening network news. This interview marks the first time she has been the one questioned in a long-form podcast setting.
Immigrant Family Background
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(00:02:16)
  • Key Takeaway: Norah O’Donnell’s family history includes an immigrant grandmother fleeing religious persecution from Northern Ireland and a grandfather who was an illegal stowaway from Canada, underscoring that America is built on diverse immigrants.
  • Summary: Norah O’Donnell’s grandmother was an immigrant from Northern Ireland who fled religious persecution as a Catholic. Her grandfather arrived illegally through Canada as a stowaway. This background reinforces the belief that the nation is fundamentally built on immigrants from all backgrounds.
We the Women Book Inspiration
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(00:03:50)
  • Key Takeaway: The book We the Women focuses on American heroines leading up to America’s 250th birthday, examining why the Declaration of Independence’s promises of equality did not initially apply to women.
  • Summary: The book We the Women: The Hidden Heroes Who Shaped America offers a fresh look at history through women’s eyes, focusing on patriots who demanded the country live up to the Declaration of Independence’s promises. The central question explored is why unalienable rights were not initially extended to women. Reading the book is intended to ignite strength and conviction in the reader.
Inspiration from Barbara Walters
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(00:09:34)
  • Key Takeaway: Norah O’Donnell was inspired to pursue journalism after seeing Barbara Walters interview powerful figures, embodying the belief that ‘if you can see it, you can believe it.’
  • Summary: Growing up, Norah O’Donnell saw Barbara Walters as a role model who had a front-row seat to history. This visibility fueled her own dream to achieve a similar position in journalism. She credits Walters and other pioneering women for paving the way for her career opportunities.
Gail King Friendship Dynamic
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(00:12:49)
  • Key Takeaway: The genuine friendship between Norah O’Donnell and Gail King, developed while co-anchoring the morning show, allowed them to communicate non-verbally, demonstrating empowered women empowering each other.
  • Summary: Anchoring a morning show is tiring, but sharing early mornings with Gail King involved telling hilarious stories and sharing endless energy. O’Donnell and King developed such a strong rapport that they could communicate complex ideas simply by looking at each other. Gail King is described as ‘sunshine,’ embodying the positive energy one should seek in colleagues and friends.
Impact of Barbara Walters’ Support
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(00:13:58)
  • Key Takeaway: Barbara Walters sent Norah O’Donnell a congratulatory note upon taking the evening news anchor role, validating her journey despite Walters’ own past career difficulties.
  • Summary: Barbara Walters sent a congratulatory note to O’Donnell when she took the evening news anchor chair, which meant a great deal because Walters herself faced doubt early in her career. Oprah Winfrey also offered support, defining O’Donnell’s role as having ‘power’ by telling the world’s most important stories. Public and private support among women is essential for success.
Motivation for Writing ‘We the Women’
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(00:17:33)
  • Key Takeaway: Researching We the Women for America’s 250th birthday unlocked something personal within O’Donnell, revealing that women have historically been a force for positive change even without rights.
  • Summary: The book originated from a desire to highlight unknown women’s stories in honor of America’s 250th birthday. The research process, which took nearly three years, unexpectedly unlocked personal insights for O’Donnell. A key learning was that women, as Harriet Beecher Stowe noted, are the great architects of society and have always driven positive change.
Hidden History: Mary Catherine Goddard
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(00:25:18)
  • Key Takeaway: Mary Catherine Goddard printed the first official Declaration of Independence bearing all signatories’ names, an act of treason at the time, yet her story is largely unknown.
  • Summary: Women’s history is a relatively new field of study, partly because women’s letters and diaries were often not saved. Mary Catherine Goddard’s name is on the Declaration of Independence as the printer of the first official broadside, a courageous act. Learning about such figures could significantly alter young girls’ perceptions of what they can achieve.
Handling Rejection and Failure
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(00:27:41)
  • Key Takeaway: The fear of rejection often holds women back, but historical figures like Elizabeth Blackwell faced numerous rejections before achieving success, demonstrating that perseverance is key.
  • Summary: Rejection is universal, dating back to America’s founding; Mary Catherine Goddard was fired from her postmaster job after supporting the Declaration. Elizabeth Blackwell was rejected by over ten medical schools before being accepted as a joke, yet she persevered to found a hospital. These stories show that setbacks often lead to redirection toward a greater path.
Turning Pain into Power: Eleanor Roosevelt
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(00:34:37)
  • Key Takeaway: Eleanor Roosevelt transformed childhood pain, parental criticism, and marital infidelity into political power, becoming a highly influential political figure for 50 years.
  • Summary: Eleanor Roosevelt endured harsh criticism from her mother and the pain of FDR’s affair, yet she supported his career through polio and the presidency. She became the longest-serving First Lady, hosting hundreds of press conferences and acting as a ‘shadow commander-in-chief’ during WWII. Her life exemplifies turning deep personal pain into immense public perseverance.
Grandmother’s Immigrant Journey
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(00:36:50)
  • Key Takeaway: Norah O’Donnell’s grandmother, Mary Teresa, immigrated alone from Northern Ireland in the 1930s to work as an orderly in a mental hospital, embodying immense bravery and hard work.
  • Summary: Mary Teresa, O’Donnell’s grandmother, worked in a linen factory at age 12 in Northern Ireland before boarding a boat alone in her early 20s during the 1930s. She worked hard in a difficult job in America but was known for her kindness. This bravery is seen as a through-line connecting her to the persevering women in the book.
The Promise of the Declaration
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(00:51:36)
  • Key Takeaway: The 13 words in the Declaration of Independence are the most important in human history, and the last 250 years of American history have been a continuous effort to live up to those ideals, with women central to that effort.
  • Summary: The ideals of equality in the Declaration of Independence are still relevant today, making America the greatest country in the world despite messy democracy. Women were leaders in the abolitionist and suffragist movements to expand these rights, fighting for the power of the vote. O’Donnell affirms her belief that American elections are still fair.
Marriage and Support System
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(00:54:04)
  • Key Takeaway: Norah O’Donnell credits her 25-year marriage to Jeff, whom she met at Georgetown, to him being an equal partner who supports her career and makes her a better person.
  • Summary: Jeff, whom O’Donnell calls her best friend, has been an equal partner in marriage and parenthood, sometimes doing even more than equal share. He supports her career, including reading early copies of her book. He still leaves her encouraging sticky notes, a practice that started in college, emphasizing the need for constant encouragement.
Power of Handwritten Notes
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(00:57:14)
  • Key Takeaway: Handwritten notes, though rare in the age of email, are powerful tools for communication, securing opportunities, and conveying sincere gratitude or condolence.
  • Summary: O’Donnell notes that many big interviews, including with Pope Francis, followed handwritten requests she sent over many years. She sent a condolence note to Joe Biden after his son Bo passed, and Biden later mentioned keeping that note on his desk during their interview. The act of handwriting signals clear, personal intention to the receiver.
Hopes for Her Children
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(01:06:26)
  • Key Takeaway: Norah O’Donnell hopes her children learn from her family’s history that nothing is impossible and that they should always be kind, maintain good manners, and never stop telling them ‘I love you.’
  • Summary: O’Donnell dedicated her book to her daughters to show them that nothing is impossible. The core lesson she hopes to impart is to ‘do the right thing’ and ‘be kind,’ summarized by her husband’s saying: ‘good manners, good behavior, everything else is fun.’ She makes sure to tell her children daily that she loves them and is proud of them, noting that a parent’s heart expands with their children’s adulthood.
Parenting Lessons and Love
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(01:07:29)
  • Key Takeaway: The foundation of good parenting involves teaching good manners, good behavior, kindness, and shared responsibility.
  • Summary: The speaker shares her husband’s saying: good manners, good behavior, everything else is fun, which encapsulates their parenting philosophy. They emphasize the importance of telling children ‘I love you and I’m proud of you’ daily, as the capacity to love them only grows as they become adults. Children are also assigned household responsibilities like dishes, trash, and pantry organization.
Children’s View of Career
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(01:09:20)
  • Key Takeaway: Norah O’Donnell’s older children find her professional work ‘pretty cool’ and are now closely following the news from various sources.
  • Summary: The children generally think her professional work is cool, though they sometimes decline invitations to events. They are now engaged with the news, often sourcing information from TikTok and other social media feeds. The speaker aims to introduce them to diverse people, including creators, entrepreneurs, artists, and athletes who pursue their dreams.
Worry, Fear, and Preparation
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(01:10:34)
  • Key Takeaway: Fear of failure is channeled into intense study and work, operating under the principle that preparation builds confidence, which equals success.
  • Summary: The speaker admits to being a worry wart, channeling much of her life’s work through this fear. She identifies listening as a superpower and uses preparation to combat anxiety, even if it sometimes leads to working herself into a tizzy. Her current worries center on her children’s health and safety, and the general well-being of people.
Information Overload and Reading
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(01:12:05)
  • Key Takeaway: The constant intake of information from multiple sources, especially disturbing social media content, necessitates modulating consumption habits.
  • Summary: The current media landscape, characterized by sipping from a fire hose of information, causes anxiety due to disturbing images shared on social media. While knowing world events is important for engagement, finding the right way to modulate this intake is crucial. A recent strategy employed is putting down the phone to read great books, such as her own, We the Women.
Role of Faith and Spirituality
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(01:13:36)
  • Key Takeaway: Faith is sustained through learned values of love for every individual and is experienced as a partner walking alongside life’s journey, not solely through regular church attendance.
  • Summary: The speaker grew up Catholic, learning values centered on loving every individual and focusing on internal character over external appearance. She believes faith sustains many people, and for her, it manifests more in those core values than in strict church attendance. She describes faith as walking alongside her, often using prayers like the Lord’s Prayer when waking up in the middle of the night.
Prayer vs. Worry
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(01:19:11)
  • Key Takeaway: A guiding principle is to either pray or worry, but never do both, as worrying after praying implies a lack of trust in God.
  • Summary: The speaker adopted the maxim: ’either pray or worry, but don’t do both.’ If she finds herself worrying after praying, she recognizes it as a sign she is trying to carry the burden herself instead of trusting. Prayers can originate from various sources and serve as a form of meditation.
Political Division and Media Consumption
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(01:19:32)
  • Key Takeaway: Political division is intensified because people are less likely to associate with those holding differing political views, often due to social media algorithms reinforcing existing belief systems.
  • Summary: A journalistic perspective suggests division stems from people no longer associating with those who disagree politically, partly because fewer people attend community hubs like churches. Social media algorithms feed users the same belief systems, creating echo chambers. It is important to intentionally expose oneself to differing viewpoints by being a good listener.
State of the Country and Polarization
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(01:20:48)
  • Key Takeaway: The country is experiencing a major transition exacerbated by financial inequality, leading to a growing wealth chasm and deep polarization between the ‘haves’ and ‘have-nots’.
  • Summary: The recent close elections reflect a significant moment of transition in the speaker’s lifetime. This transition is most strongly driven by financial inequality, which the book We the Women predicts will lead to a class struggle. This growing wealth chasm between the top and bottom is identified as the root cause of current deep polarization.
Role of Journalism in Democracy
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(01:23:08)
  • Key Takeaway: Journalism’s essential role is to provide trusted, fair, and tough questioning to ensure the electorate has access to decipherable truth necessary for democracy to function.
  • Summary: The journalist’s job is to secure interviews with difficult subjects and ask tough but fair questions, as trusted journalism is needed to navigate complex issues like healthcare and immigration policy. She emphasizes the importance of a free flow of information and being a smart consumer of trusted news sources. The First Amendment, which protects the press, is still believed to be protected, despite external pressures.
Career Challenges and Integrity
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(01:25:51)
  • Key Takeaway: Despite the job becoming harder due to external pressures against the press, maintaining personal integrity is paramount for securing high-profile, balanced interviews.
  • Summary: The job of a journalist is certainly harder now than it was five or ten years ago, with people actively sowing doubt against the press and journalists sometimes facing threats. The speaker prioritizes her integrity to ensure she is viewed as fair, which allows her to secure tough interviews with leaders across the political spectrum. Teamwork is vital, as no one achieves success alone, whether professionally or personally.