ABC News anchor Diane Sawyer has landed the first interview with Amanda Knox, the American girl who was convicted of murdering her roommate in Italy, only to be acquitted in dramatic fashion in October, 2011. The interview will air during a dedicated primetime special Tuesday, April 30 at 10 PM.

Immediately after she was released, Knox and her family were inundated with interview requests.

As expected, Knox was not offered payment for the interview, but rather maximum exposure as she prepares to promote her book, which comes out the same day as the ABC News interview. In addition to the primetime special, portions of the Knox interview (and mentions of the book) will air on “ABC World News,” “Good Morning America,” “Nightline” and ABC’s digital platforms, expanding its reach exponentially.

While Sawyer is getting the big interview, it was correspondent Elizabeth Vargas who did most of the legwork in Italy for ABC, and led the network’s coverage of the case.

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Mediabistro’s Diane Clehane was at her usual perch yesterday at Michael’s, Midtown Manhattan’s power lunch spot. And look who she spotted at table one.

1. Ann Curry and attorney Bob Barnett. We were thrilled to see Ann happily ensconced at the best table in the room, graciously chatting with well-wishers and friends.

Barnett represented Curry during her recent contract renegotiations with NBC News which saw Curry take on the role of anchor-at-large for “Today” and correspondent for NBC News.

Diane also learned some TV trivia from table 11:

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FishbowlDC’s Betsy Rothstein talked with “USA Today” reporter Susan Page this morning about her interview with Ann Curry in which Curry outlined her “Today” show departure.

Page, “USA Today’s” DC bureau chief, mainly covers politics so we wanted to know how she got the interview with the most talked-about media personality of the past few weeks.

“Better to ask Ann Curry why she chose USA TODAY for this interview,” Page says. “My experience with people in the news, in politics and elsewhere, is that they are drawn to USA TODAY’s national reach and our reputation for fairness.”

Page also says her relationship with DC power lawyer Bob Barnett, who represented Curry during negotiations, helped. “I have done some interviews with political authors represented by Bob Barnett, and I believe Bob suggested my name.”

New York‘s Gabriel Sherman writes today that Fox News CEO Roger Ailes is working on an autobiography.

When contacted for comment, a Fox News spokesperson told TVNewser, “There is one source with direct knowledge of Roger’s plans — and that’s Roger himself. Since Roger has never spoken to Gabe in his life, we continue to be fascinated with Gabe’s uncanny ability to read his mind.”

As Sherman notes in his item, he is working on a book about Ailes, and has spoken to a number of people that have worked with the Fox News CEO over the years.

Ailes’s agent, D.C. super-lawyer Bob Barnett, is working out the deal with Murdoch-owned HarperCollins to publish the book. Several publishing sources told me that Ailes would get a $3–4 million advance for the book, which is being co-authored by Fox News contributor Jim Pinkerton. Ailes and Pinkerton go way back. The two worked together on George H.W. Bush’s 1988 presidential campaign.

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NY Mag has new details about high-profile Fox News contributor Sarah Palin and the three-year deal she signed with the network in January, which is reportedly worth $1 million a year. New York‘s Gabriel Sherman writes that EVP of programming Bill Shine was charged with landing Palin for FNC by chairman and founder Roger Ailes after her resignation as governor.

The negotiations “dragged out over the next six months,” and Palin’s agent wanted all of her appearances arranged by Shine directly, among other stipulations:

[Palin's agent Bob] Barnett drove negotiations with Fox hard. Palin made it clear to Fox that she wouldn’t be willing to move to New York or Washington. “If you take someone like Karl Rove who left office, he lives in D.C. and he could take a car down to the bureau,” Shine says. Fox offered to build a remote-camera hookup in her Wasilla home. Barnett also told Shine that Palin didn’t want producers hounding her for interviews. Barnett wanted all her appearances to have to go through Shine personally. In January 2010, Palin finally had her deal. Her star power at Fox has sparked competition among the various personalities, all of whom would like more Palin on their shows. Shine is responsible for making sure everyone gets equal time, to maximize her ratings appeal across the network. “Obviously, there needs to be a sense of fairness,” Shine explains.

In addition to her book deals and other television contracts, Palin also reportedly earns $100,000 per speaking engagement. The rest here.