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TYNDALL HEADLINE: HIGHLIGHTS FROM NOVEMBER 3, 2008
It was rehearsal day. All three broadcast networks showed off their news divisions' Election HQ on the campaign's final day as they expanded their nightly newscasts to an hour and gave their Electoral College state-by-state colored maps a dry run. Democratic candidate Barack Obama was selected as the lead on all three newscasts--but it was legitimate journalism not favoritism that guided their decision to give him precedence over Republican John McCain. Madelyn Dunham, the 86-year-old who had raised her grandson Barack for much of his youth, died of cancer in Hawaii. The bereaved Obama continued barnstorming anyway and that poignant contrast was the Story of the Day. Tyndall Report, for the sake of consistency in our database, monitors just the first half hour of each newscast here.
TYNDALL PICKS FOR NOVEMBER 3, 2008: CLICK ON GRID ELEMENTS TO SEARCH FOR MATCHING ITEMS
HOURLONG REHEARSAL DAY AT ELECTION HQ It was rehearsal day. All three broadcast networks showed off their news divisions' Election HQ on the campaign's final day as they expanded their nightly newscasts to an hour and gave their Electoral College state-by-state colored maps a dry run. Democratic candidate Barack Obama was selected as the lead on all three newscasts--but it was legitimate journalism not favoritism that guided their decision to give him precedence over Republican John McCain. Madelyn Dunham, the 86-year-old who had raised her grandson Barack for much of his youth, died of cancer in Hawaii. The bereaved Obama continued barnstorming anyway and that poignant contrast was the Story of the Day. Tyndall Report, for the sake of consistency in our database, monitors just the first half hour of each newscast here.
Obama issued a formal statement calling his grandmother "the cornerstone of our family and a woman of extraordinary accomplishment, strength and humility." ABC's Jake Tapper quoted from the interview with Obama by his network's Good Morning America anchor Robin Roberts when he visited Dunham just eleven days ago. He used the same words: "She really has been one of the cornerstones of my life and she has been a remarkable woman."
As for how affecting it was to see the candidate continue campaigning despite his grief, who can tell? NBC's Lee Cowan saw stoicism: "The strain on him showed only once for a brief moment," when Obama mistook Florida for Ohio. CBS' Dean Reynolds saw emotionalism: "He soldiered on" with "a heavy heart" and a "grim look." It was "clearly a bittersweet day."
CBS' Katie Couric became the third of the broadcast network anchors to air an extended interview with Obama during the nightly newscasts. She mentioned that she sought a similar sitdown with Republican John McCain but he "declined our invitation." ABC's Charles Gibson aired his in two parts (here and here) last Wednesday; NBC's Brian Williams divided his into a two-parter last Thursday and Friday. Couric asked Obama--as Gibson and Williams had before--about the dangers, should he be elected, of "overreach" by an "unbridled, unchecked, filibusterproof Democratic majority." Obama demurred at the question: "I think it is important to point out that the critics who make this claim are Republicans."
"If things go your way," Couric inquired, what will that mean to you personally?" "This overwhelming feeling of humility and gratitude," the candidate answered, "where you say: 'Boy! I had better come through for folks if I win this thing because they really need it."
ZIGZAGS THROUGH HANGARS Helter-skelter urgency was the overriding impression from Republican John McCain's final day on the stump. ABC's David Wright (at the tail of the Tapper videostream) noted that "the speeches are shorter and the days much longer" as the candidate jetted across the nation. CBS' Chip Reid saw "a zigzag course through seven battleground states." NBC's Kelly O'Donnell called it campaigning "in the fast lane" with so-called hangar rallies--events "staged at the airport to stop and go quickly." She calculated 3,500 miles traveled in a single day with stops in states totaling 107 electoral votes. ABC's Wright observed that all but one of those states voted Republican in 2004: "He is forced to play defense."
MAKE A FINAL PITCH ON ABC ABC anchor Charles Gibson returned to his one-on-one interviews with both candidates to allow them to "make a final pitch, to state their central argument." John McCain invoked abstract themes. Barack Obama chose concrete issues. Citing tax cuts, healthcare, education reform and green energy, Obama stated that "we need a champion for middle class families." McCain chose "Duty, Honor & Country. Reform, Prosperity & Peace." Referring to "scandal after scandal" in his own Republican Party he declared: "We have to return to the principles of Abraham Lincoln and Theodore Roosevelt and Ronald Reagan--not only the principles but the practices."
PENNSYLVANIA AND MISSOURI The state-by-state dry runs of the blue and red graphic aids for election night were assigned to George Stephanopoulos at ABC, Jeff Greenfield at CBS and Chuck Todd at NBC. Todd called the Republican task "very, very difficult when you look at it but it is still possible." It would mean maintaining control of five toss-up states--Fla, Mont, Nev, Mo, Va--and winning over Pennsylvania. Stephanopoulos, too, zeroed in on the Keystone State: "So many of his maps start with taking that state away from the Democrats." Greenfield pointed to early in the evening. Polls in Virginia, Georgia and Indiana close at 7pm. If Barack Obama is declared the winner of any of those states, "McCain's path gets really tricky."
Yet for its swing state profile, NBC sent Mark Potter to Missouri, the state that has voted for the winner of 25 of the last 26 elections. Potter called it both "battleground and bellwether" even though it is in the central time zone and so is unlikely to be a bellwether this year. Its poll closing follows decisive states rather than preceding them. Potter's tip for demarcating red county from blue county was the pronunciation of the state's final syllable: "uh" for GOP; "ee" for Dems.
FACEBOOK TAKES ON THE ALBATROSS Even though it was Election Eve, NBC and CBS could not resist playing a game of turning points. What had been the decisive factors in shaping the General Election race? NBC's Andrea Mitchell and CBS' Bob Schieffer (at the tail of the Greenfield videostream) both pointed to Barack Obama's decision to raise his own funds rather than relying on federal grants, with their spending limit. CBS' Schieffer and NBC in-house Republican analyst Mike Murphy (at the tail of the Ford videostream) both reckoned that the selection of running mate Sarah Palin had harmed John McCain. NBC's in-house Democratic analyst Harold Ford gave credit to Chairman Howard Dean for running that party's 50-state strategy rather than focusing exclusively on swing states. NBC's Mitchell called Obama's technology--texting, myspace, facebook--"the first of the C21st campaigns."
For NBC's White House correspondent David Gregory (at the tail of the Mitchell videostream) there was one factor above all that has been crucial in this election. "He is everything," Gregory declared, referring to George Bush, "the albatross around John McCain's neck."
CONGRESSIONAL GOP PLAYS DEFENSE ABC's George Stephanopoulos surveyed the 35 Senate races and focused on eleven states--all currently Republican--that he called competitive. He further divided those eleven into three categories: empty seats that are certain to change hands--Va, NM, Colo; defended seats that are "very, very close" contests--NC, NH, Minn, Ore, Aka; and a trio that should be safe for the Republican incumbent but are now in doubt--Ga, Ky, Miss. NBC's Lester Holt agreed that "Republicans are on defense in places they might never have imagined even a few months ago." North Carolina's incumbent Elizabeth Dole is one of those "struggling," as ABC's Jonathan Karl put it. ABC became the third network to profile her race against Democrat Kay Hagan. NBC's Andrea Mitchell filed last week. CBS anchor Katie Couric traveled to Charlotte to check the race out for herself two weeks ago.
BRIBING THE DISENFRANCHISED Children are deprived of the franchise on the grounds of their age. Instead of feeling alienated against the political system because of their exclusion, the network newscasts would have us believe they are instilled with civic pride. Friday, ABC anchor Charles Gibson made the singing debaters of Atlanta's Ron Clark Academy his network's Persons of the Week for their YouTube music video You Can Vote However You Like. Now CBS' Kelly Wallace celebrates debating fourth graders and eighth graders running for student council on Long Island. Bribery is a civic virtue one council candidate has discovered at Lawrence Middle School--Matt Foley hands out free bars of Hershey to his electorate of classmates with his likeness pasted on the wrapper.
THE TV BROKE MY CONDOM Amid all this politics--and zero international coverage--a couple of other stories surfaced. The report by CNBC's Phil LeBeau on NBC was serious. "Unbelievable!" he exclaimed as the automobile industry posted October sales data that were its weakest in more than 25 years. LeBeau consulted an unidentified Detroit executive: "The worst may not already have happened. We could see it even lower next month." The CBS story by Sandra Hughes was superficial, citing a study published in Pediatrics comparing the television viewing habits of teenagers whose sexual activity results in conception with those who do not make babies or have abortions. Teenagers who avoid pregnancy tend to watch sexy programing less often than their peers who are fecund. Hughes did not explain the mechanism whereby Sex & the City might deactivate one's contraception.
HERE’S GAFFNEY Adrienne Gaffney has joined our happy band of news junkies who "watched last night night's newscasts...so you do not have to." Here are her observations on the same content Tyndall Report just monitored at Vanity Fair magazine's Culture & Celebrity blog.
Obama issued a formal statement calling his grandmother "the cornerstone of our family and a woman of extraordinary accomplishment, strength and humility." ABC's Jake Tapper quoted from the interview with Obama by his network's Good Morning America anchor Robin Roberts when he visited Dunham just eleven days ago. He used the same words: "She really has been one of the cornerstones of my life and she has been a remarkable woman."
As for how affecting it was to see the candidate continue campaigning despite his grief, who can tell? NBC's Lee Cowan saw stoicism: "The strain on him showed only once for a brief moment," when Obama mistook Florida for Ohio. CBS' Dean Reynolds saw emotionalism: "He soldiered on" with "a heavy heart" and a "grim look." It was "clearly a bittersweet day."
CBS' Katie Couric became the third of the broadcast network anchors to air an extended interview with Obama during the nightly newscasts. She mentioned that she sought a similar sitdown with Republican John McCain but he "declined our invitation." ABC's Charles Gibson aired his in two parts (here and here) last Wednesday; NBC's Brian Williams divided his into a two-parter last Thursday and Friday. Couric asked Obama--as Gibson and Williams had before--about the dangers, should he be elected, of "overreach" by an "unbridled, unchecked, filibusterproof Democratic majority." Obama demurred at the question: "I think it is important to point out that the critics who make this claim are Republicans."
"If things go your way," Couric inquired, what will that mean to you personally?" "This overwhelming feeling of humility and gratitude," the candidate answered, "where you say: 'Boy! I had better come through for folks if I win this thing because they really need it."
ZIGZAGS THROUGH HANGARS Helter-skelter urgency was the overriding impression from Republican John McCain's final day on the stump. ABC's David Wright (at the tail of the Tapper videostream) noted that "the speeches are shorter and the days much longer" as the candidate jetted across the nation. CBS' Chip Reid saw "a zigzag course through seven battleground states." NBC's Kelly O'Donnell called it campaigning "in the fast lane" with so-called hangar rallies--events "staged at the airport to stop and go quickly." She calculated 3,500 miles traveled in a single day with stops in states totaling 107 electoral votes. ABC's Wright observed that all but one of those states voted Republican in 2004: "He is forced to play defense."
MAKE A FINAL PITCH ON ABC ABC anchor Charles Gibson returned to his one-on-one interviews with both candidates to allow them to "make a final pitch, to state their central argument." John McCain invoked abstract themes. Barack Obama chose concrete issues. Citing tax cuts, healthcare, education reform and green energy, Obama stated that "we need a champion for middle class families." McCain chose "Duty, Honor & Country. Reform, Prosperity & Peace." Referring to "scandal after scandal" in his own Republican Party he declared: "We have to return to the principles of Abraham Lincoln and Theodore Roosevelt and Ronald Reagan--not only the principles but the practices."
PENNSYLVANIA AND MISSOURI The state-by-state dry runs of the blue and red graphic aids for election night were assigned to George Stephanopoulos at ABC, Jeff Greenfield at CBS and Chuck Todd at NBC. Todd called the Republican task "very, very difficult when you look at it but it is still possible." It would mean maintaining control of five toss-up states--Fla, Mont, Nev, Mo, Va--and winning over Pennsylvania. Stephanopoulos, too, zeroed in on the Keystone State: "So many of his maps start with taking that state away from the Democrats." Greenfield pointed to early in the evening. Polls in Virginia, Georgia and Indiana close at 7pm. If Barack Obama is declared the winner of any of those states, "McCain's path gets really tricky."
Yet for its swing state profile, NBC sent Mark Potter to Missouri, the state that has voted for the winner of 25 of the last 26 elections. Potter called it both "battleground and bellwether" even though it is in the central time zone and so is unlikely to be a bellwether this year. Its poll closing follows decisive states rather than preceding them. Potter's tip for demarcating red county from blue county was the pronunciation of the state's final syllable: "uh" for GOP; "ee" for Dems.
FACEBOOK TAKES ON THE ALBATROSS Even though it was Election Eve, NBC and CBS could not resist playing a game of turning points. What had been the decisive factors in shaping the General Election race? NBC's Andrea Mitchell and CBS' Bob Schieffer (at the tail of the Greenfield videostream) both pointed to Barack Obama's decision to raise his own funds rather than relying on federal grants, with their spending limit. CBS' Schieffer and NBC in-house Republican analyst Mike Murphy (at the tail of the Ford videostream) both reckoned that the selection of running mate Sarah Palin had harmed John McCain. NBC's in-house Democratic analyst Harold Ford gave credit to Chairman Howard Dean for running that party's 50-state strategy rather than focusing exclusively on swing states. NBC's Mitchell called Obama's technology--texting, myspace, facebook--"the first of the C21st campaigns."
For NBC's White House correspondent David Gregory (at the tail of the Mitchell videostream) there was one factor above all that has been crucial in this election. "He is everything," Gregory declared, referring to George Bush, "the albatross around John McCain's neck."
CONGRESSIONAL GOP PLAYS DEFENSE ABC's George Stephanopoulos surveyed the 35 Senate races and focused on eleven states--all currently Republican--that he called competitive. He further divided those eleven into three categories: empty seats that are certain to change hands--Va, NM, Colo; defended seats that are "very, very close" contests--NC, NH, Minn, Ore, Aka; and a trio that should be safe for the Republican incumbent but are now in doubt--Ga, Ky, Miss. NBC's Lester Holt agreed that "Republicans are on defense in places they might never have imagined even a few months ago." North Carolina's incumbent Elizabeth Dole is one of those "struggling," as ABC's Jonathan Karl put it. ABC became the third network to profile her race against Democrat Kay Hagan. NBC's Andrea Mitchell filed last week. CBS anchor Katie Couric traveled to Charlotte to check the race out for herself two weeks ago.
BRIBING THE DISENFRANCHISED Children are deprived of the franchise on the grounds of their age. Instead of feeling alienated against the political system because of their exclusion, the network newscasts would have us believe they are instilled with civic pride. Friday, ABC anchor Charles Gibson made the singing debaters of Atlanta's Ron Clark Academy his network's Persons of the Week for their YouTube music video You Can Vote However You Like. Now CBS' Kelly Wallace celebrates debating fourth graders and eighth graders running for student council on Long Island. Bribery is a civic virtue one council candidate has discovered at Lawrence Middle School--Matt Foley hands out free bars of Hershey to his electorate of classmates with his likeness pasted on the wrapper.
THE TV BROKE MY CONDOM Amid all this politics--and zero international coverage--a couple of other stories surfaced. The report by CNBC's Phil LeBeau on NBC was serious. "Unbelievable!" he exclaimed as the automobile industry posted October sales data that were its weakest in more than 25 years. LeBeau consulted an unidentified Detroit executive: "The worst may not already have happened. We could see it even lower next month." The CBS story by Sandra Hughes was superficial, citing a study published in Pediatrics comparing the television viewing habits of teenagers whose sexual activity results in conception with those who do not make babies or have abortions. Teenagers who avoid pregnancy tend to watch sexy programing less often than their peers who are fecund. Hughes did not explain the mechanism whereby Sex & the City might deactivate one's contraception.
HERE’S GAFFNEY Adrienne Gaffney has joined our happy band of news junkies who "watched last night night's newscasts...so you do not have to." Here are her observations on the same content Tyndall Report just monitored at Vanity Fair magazine's Culture & Celebrity blog.
