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Showdown in St. Louis
The following entry has been re-posted from PBS' Vote 2008 "Election Connection" blog.
Before the Saturday Night Live skits, network news interviews, and ever-shifting horserace polls, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin's game-changing speech at the Republican National Convention foreshadowed the buzz we're seeing this week in the lead up to tomorrow night's vice presidential debate in St. Louis, Mo.
In fact, it seems more people are talking about Thursday night's debate between Palin and Sen. Joe Biden than were the first presidential debate last Friday. Interestingly, the largest percentage of viewers for the first debate were in the St. Louis area, the same location as Thursday's meeting. Perhaps Missourians are the most civic-minded people in the country?
But beyond the Arch are communities that are still processing McCain's surprising choice, and pundits who are reiterating the unvarying historical fact that debates - and vice presidential ones in particular - rarely have much to do with predicting the election winner.
Patchwork Nation's Dante Chinni spoke with communities across the U.S. to take their temperature ahead of the vice presidential debate.
Judging from the reaction in some of Patchwork Nation's most socially conservative communities, the McCain camp might face a massive revolt from the people who were so enthusiastic about Palin's selection.
"I think a lot of Nixa people would be angry if she were removed from the ticket," wrote John Schmalzbauer, a blogger in Nixa, Mo., in an e-mail. "The McCain/Palin signs are sprouting all over town. At Wal-Mart, I saw a vehicle with a Maverick/Barracuda sticker. The same car had a Christian radio sticker. She is resonating with evangelicals."
People we contacted in Nixa, our "Evangelical Epicenter" community, uniformly said that such a move would not happen - or if it did, the town would be up in arms. Many also said they expected her to do well in Thursday's vice-presidential debate.
Up in Sioux Center, Iowa - our agricultural "Tractor Country" community, another Republican stronghold - feelings were similar.
Donald King, a professor at Dordt College, a Christian school, says people in his community are a bit cautious about Palin and her lack of experience, but she still speaks to many voters there.
Will Thursday's debate have an impact in the long run? Adam Nagourney at The New York Times points out that "In truth, the political potency of this 90-minute debate is questionable... there are so many unusual things about the contest between Ms. Palin and Mr. Biden that the debate could just as possibly be another forgotten burst in a campaign that has been filled with such moments."
But Thursday's moment still requires a huge amount of preparation. Both Biden and Palin have been off the radar most of the week, studying the issues and getting ready. NewsHour's Debating Our Destiny gives an in-depth look at how candidates prepare for the debates. 1984 Vice Presidential candidate Geraldine Ferraro gave her insight on the process.
"If you ask me a question, don't tell me what the question is in advance, cause I'd rather not know. I'd rather give you a spontaneous direct response to it. I also lose interest if I have to go over and over and over again because it looks to me if you're practicing it becomes artificial. So I just find the whole process very tedious," she said.
NewsHour senior correspondent Gwen Ifill will be moderating Thursday's debate. Tune in at 9pm ET or watch online. If you have feedback about PBS' coverage, please contact the Ombudsman at ombudsman@pbs.org.
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Gwen Ifill should recuse herself as moderator
Gwen Ifill has written a book about "THE AGE OF OBAMA"? And it's due out on Inauguration Day? Well, thanks for letting us know, PBS (actually, I heard it from Michelle Malkin).
How outrageously UNFAIR that Ifill should be allowed to question Gov. Palin in the nation's only vice presidential debate tonight, given the fact that she stands to gain financially should the McCain-Palin ticket be defeated.
Ifill should recuse herself to avoid this obvious conflict of interest, and PBS should be ashamed of itself for its complicity in partisanship. It's really despicable in such a close election.
P.S. Newsflash: At least half the country is not liberal.
Gwen Ifull and upcoming debate Thur., 10/2
I am very disappointed in PBS, and angry that Gwen Ifill will be moderating the debate this evening! I look to PBS for unbiased information, facts, having someone ask the hard questions, retrieving responses, but allowing ME, the financial supporter of PBS to make the decision. The fact that Gwen did not divulge her upcoming book release to the committee seems intentionally deceitful, and disrespectful to those of us who trust her.
WHAT HAS HAPPENED TO truth, honesty in reporting????????????????????
Gwen lfill as moderator for vice-presidential debate
Why is Gwen lfill the moderator for the debate tonight? She has written a book favoring Obama and therefore journalistic and media ethics are worthless pieces of paper. Not only is Gwen from PBS but PBS is going to transmit this. What a disappointment. I realized that the media is totally biased but I did have some trust in PBS. If I ever thought of supporting this station, this kind of behavior cements the fact that I will never give them a penny,
debate response
Are you kidding? What debate were you watching? It may be true that Palin didn't completely fall on her face, but she was not even in the same ballpark as Biden. I was really shocked by Shield's and Brook's responses. It seemed to me that they were falling over backwards to avoid being accused of spinning their responses towards the Dems. How often did Palin refuse to answer the questions she was asked and instead wander off to her prepared script? Can you possibly consider her answers--so vague, so general, and so aimed at spin comparable to Joe Biden's? Unlike Palin, he actually responded to the questions, and with specificity (as well as an authentic passion instead of that trumped up Disneyland Miss Congeniality approach of Palin's.) It WAS, as you said in a moment of clarity, like "Gidget goes to Washington." In my view, Palin performed as expected, which is to say poorly indeed. And so I was surprised, not to say disappointed, by the radically different views offered by Shields and Brooks. The only commentary that seemed to me really honest came from the Times reporter. By any rational standard Biden won hands down!
But then perhaps that's what I find so offensive in the S&B response. Your criteria seemed to be theatrical/political rather than substantive. And doesn't that kind of public assessment contribute to the general anti-intellectualism that abounds already? I thought that PBS was in the business of raising the bar, not lowering it!
St. Louis
Ms. Ifill,
How come you didn't ask Palin any questions that define her? Amolng other topics, her position on choice, rape, choice of judges, privacy, endangered species, protection of the environment? How come you didn't call her on her desire to expand the Vice Presidency and her misunderstanding of the prescribed role of the office? No viewer came out knowing how dangerous this woman could be as a VP who is a hearbeat away from the Presidency.
You are a very admired journalist. You acted as if you had been muzzled.
Sara Williams
Palin/Biden debate
I was disappointed in your attempt to moderate this debate. You never once tried to keep the particpants on subject. Palin declared that she was not going to answer some of the questions and went on to other topics. If this was your decision, you were the wrong person for moderator. If you were muzzled by someone, you should have stepped aside saying why. Very bad job for whatever reason. I hope for an explanation publically stating why you did moderate as you did.
DEBATE
Esteemed Gwen,
I am dismayed that Americans cannot moderate, or debate as adults, and speak freely without fear that every detail may be dissected and condemned - by innuendo.
Happy Birthday! Yours truly,
Anthony