'I'm pretty much the same,' says Elizabeth

Elizabeth Smart broke her silence to the nation for the first time Friday night when she spoke with "Today" show host Katie Couric — saying she feels she hasn't really changed.

Walking through the mountains near her family's cabin, the blond Salt Lake teenager told Couric the best part of being home was "just being back and not having to like be told I'm a horrible, wicked, evil girl every 10 seconds."

Elizabeth said her nine-month kidnapping, allegedly at the hands of two religious zealots, has made her more compassionate for the homeless.

"I think there are some things different about me, but I think I'm pretty much the same person," she told Couric.

Speaking with the inflections typical of a teenage girl, Elizabeth said she's adjusting to life as a high school sophomore, albeit a very famous one.

"There are always, like, those weirdos at school. . . . As I walk down the hall, they yell out 'Hey, Elizabeth Smart.' "

Couric's conversation with the 15-year-old is one of two interviews Elizabeth has given since she was reunited with her family on March 12.

Oprah Winfrey also spoke with Elizabeth as part of an interview with the Smart family at their Federal Heights residence. The piece will air Monday on "Oprah" on KTVX, Ch. 4.

These two interviews with nationally known television personalities could be the last time Elizabeth speaks to reporters in the near future, her father, Ed Smart, told the Deseret Morning News prior to the airing of Friday's special.

"I don't think Elizabeth is going to interview with anyone. I think she's had more than her share," he said.

Before her interviews with Couric and Winfrey, Elizabeth's parents had not allowed her to be interviewed by any reporters. Several requests for interviews by the Deseret Morning News were never granted.

The decision to speak with Couric was left largely up to Elizabeth, her father said.

"Basically, Elizabeth was allowed to say yes or no to what she wanted to do," Ed Smart said.