Roll Call's Mary Ann Akers digs deeper into Cher's upcoming appearance on this morning's "Washington Journal," which we reported yesterday, and discovers that Executive Producer Peter Slen has an almost freaky infatuation Cher.

Nobody is more excited about the sultry pop star's in-studio interview than the executive producer of "Washington Journal," Peter Slen, who happens to be Cher's biggest fan in all of Washington, D.C. ... While Slen will be talking to Cher about Operation Helmet, an organization that supplies troops with helmet liners to protect soldiers from head injuries, he'll be wishing they were on tour together.

"My iPod has her 'Living Proof' and 'The Very Best Of,' her most recent. I said farewell to her a couple of times at her concerts," Slen told us Tuesday, trying in vain to remain all C-SPAN calm for us. His absolute favorite Cher tune is the cover she does of Elton John's "When the Money's Gone," which is on "Living Proof." (He even played it for us over the phone.) "She does a beautiful job with it," he said.

Though this will be the first time Slen has ever interviewed Cher in person, he remembers the first time he talked to her. Exactly. "It was Oct. 27, 2003, at 7:16 a.m. when I was hosting," he said. (That's 4:16 a.m. California time.)