In a show about surveillance and control, the forum's awkward gallery space, spread over five levels of its narrow, wedge-shaped headquarters, becomes an advantage.
For a start, although Fiji has been suspended and Mr Bainimarama's military dictatorship shows no signs of changing any time soon, there is the awkward fact that the forum keeps its headquarters in Fiji's capital, Suva.
The forum had one awkward moment.
But American officials have said repeatedly in recent months that they believe negotiating in that multinational forum can be awkward, partly because of differences with Russia and China over Tehran.
These were awkward questions for discussion in a public forum — particularly in a small 19th-century monarchy with a dominant church.
Although Mr. Rather's counterparts at NBC and ABC, Tom Brokaw and Mr. Jennings, each moderated forums, Mr. Jennings was placed in the awkward position of presiding over one that was not shown nationally on his own network, ABC, but on MSNBC.
He had to welcome Zimbabwe's president, Robert Mugabe, and his customary entourage of party officials, to the liberation shindig, while also embracing Morgan Tsvangirai, the prime minister of Zimbabwe's awkward unity government, on his way to the world economic forum.
It may be awkward, but at least it shows you have some respect for the forum.
A prolific blogger and tweeter, she has a newsletter, forum and podcast (Comedians Telling Stuff) and has harnessed an army of similarly socially awkward followers.
I wanted to make things awkward, to talk about a subject you're not supposed to talk about in public forums.
