GAME SHOW Government, media celebrities vie on 'Jeopardy! Power Players'

Only the bravest personalities are willing to bare their knowledge.
By JULIE HINDS
KNIGHT RIDDER NEWSPAPERS
Sure, "Plan of Attack" author Bob Woodward knows the secrets of the Bush administration. But does he know his Balkan capitals?
That's what news junkies and political geeks are eager to find out this week on "Jeopardy! Power Players Week."
Besides Woodward, the contestants include 14 other media and government movers and shakers, including Air America's Al Franken, CNN's Aaron Brown and Tucker Carlson, and former White House press secretary Ari Fleischer.
The fun of any "Jeopardy!" celebrity edition is watching how the big names handle the pressure. Only the bravest TV and movie stars are willing to bare their knowledge before Alex Trebek and millions of viewers.
It was even more nerve-wracking for this week's power players, who make their living by sounding authoritative.
"It's a no-win situation, really, because even if you don't make a complete fool of yourself, you expose what you don't know," says Anderson Cooper, the wry anchor of CNN's "Anderson Cooper 360."
April tapings
The five shows were taped in early April in Washington, D.C. Players were guaranteed $20,000 for the charity of their choice, with winners getting $50,000 for their cause.
Cooper faced off against NAACP president Kweisi Mfume and CNBC's Maria Bartiromo in a match that airs tonight (7:30, WYTV Channel 33). The experience left him with strong opinions on what it takes to win.
"It's all about the buzzer," says Cooper. "It's all about finding the rhythm, sort of a Zen thing."
How seriously did Tavis Smiley take his game, which runs Friday?
The talk-show host for PBS and National Public Radio laughs about it now. But Smiley wasn't thrilled at having a category called "Meet the Press" or another one on a New Jersey theme, considering his opponents were "Meet the Press" host Tim Russert and former New Jersey governor Christine Todd Whitman.
"When I got a chance to control the board, you know what was up there? Nuclear physics!" says Smiley. "I was so upset, I ended up calling the producers. But it was all in good fun."
Competitive camaraderie
The show's executive producer, Harry Friedman, describes the atmosphere among the power players as competitive and filled with camaraderie.
"They take it a little more seriously," says Friedman. "I think it's an opportunity for them to show they can give as good as they get."
Cooper says he spent the flight to the taping brushing up on "Jeopardy" research downloaded from the Web. He was on the same plane as Franken, who took a more relaxed approach and napped.
Did the studying help him do better than his CNN colleagues? Cooper isn't saying.
"You don't talk about those kinds of things," he jokes. "You just sort of glare at each other and make notes to yourself."