Although he reportedly never pressed finger to keyboard, Russian president Boris Yeltsin yesterday held court on the World Wide Web. Unlike Koko the gorilla’s web debut (CI No 3,400), Yeltsin’s appearance yielded real news. Russia was ‘surprised’ by India’s nuclear tests, the president revealed. He also said he thought his country was not ready to have a woman as president. Yeltsin spoke to an audience his own staff reckoned at 20,000, though host MSNBC placed the figure closer to 4,000. MSNBC journalists chose 14 questions from the nearly 5,000 that were put to Yeltsin. Yeltsin’s personal translator assisted him during the session and his aides typed in his responses. Asked by a Venezuelan what he thought of Gorbachev yesterday and today, Yeltsin said: Yesterday, I thought about him. Today, I don’t think about him. On the subject of his fitness he said: According to a team of workers, including American, German doctors, I am in good health.
As ever, some of the best questions ended up on the cutting-room floor. Special mention should go this purler, from ‘G-MAN’: When they give you blood transfusions, what part blood goes in with the vodka? á
