HEFFERNAN -- Is it more fun to play pranks on British people or Americans?

BARON COHEN -- It depends on the class, actually. The best targets -- the legitimate targets -- are successful, powerful white men, who rule the country. And in Britain the upper class are incredibly accommodating. You can punch someone from the upper class in the face, and they'll go, ''Oh, I'm dreadfully sorry.'' They'll never ever throw you out of the room.

Here, there have been some occasions where people just are blunt, where they will say, ''All right, enough is enough.'' Marlin Fitzwater threw Ali G out of the room. And this year Andy Rooney hated Ali G from the moment he saw him. He starts asking: ''Have you done this before? Is English your first language?'' And then basically tries to stop the interview after one question.

HEFFERNAN -- Is Borat an anti-Semite?

BARON COHEN -- Yeah, yeah. Part of the idea of Borat is to get people to feel relaxed enough that they fully open up. And they say things that they never would on normal TV. So if they are anti-Semitic or racist or sexist, they'll say it.

HEFFERNAN -- And you asked someone, ''Do you have slaves?''

BARON COHEN -- Exactly. We were in a private gentlemen's club in Jackson, Miss. And all the serving staff were black. There's this unsaid racism; there's still segregation there. I can't remember the actual line, but I asked if he had slaves, and he said, ''Slavery's over now.'' And I go, ''Yeah, that's right.'' He goes, ''It's good.'' And I go, ''Good for them!'' He goes, ''Yeah, good for them. Bad for us.''

That guy normally would never say that he thought it's a shame that slavery doesn't exist anymore. But because he's in the room with somebody who's totally naïve and seems to not mind that slavery existed, he was fully honest.