Debate Recap
Jenn September 27th, 2008
Well, immediately following the debate, the usual suspects (MSNBC, CNN) were busy crowning Senator Obama the Debate King. Too bad that’s not what really happened. They were flashing results from focus groups, and selling their Obama provided talking points to the masses as staffers from both campaigns were frantically spinning the results their own way.
The Debate
I can’t say anyone won or lost the first part of the debate, the part that dealt with the economy. Truthfully, each represented a completely different economic philosophy. I like what I heard Rudy Giuliani say, “If you like class warfare, then Senator Obama won.” When asked to name which program Senator would cut spending on, Senator Obama instead named a couple programs where he would increased spending. Is this what we want with a stressed economy. (As a note, I don’t buy that we are in a crisis) truth be told, I think the economy is the weakest issue for both candidates.
When it came to foreign policy, John McCain performed exactly as everyone expected: command performance. John McCain oozed foreign policy expertise. His responses were littered with examples and specific information. Conversly, Senator Obama spun baseless accusations and appeared as if his breadth of foreign policy was limited to Sunday morning talk show commentary.
Overall, John McCain won on substance and it was tie when it came to connecting. Neither candidate hit a home run and neither did permanent damage. They were both well practiced and connected with their base sufficiently. The debate will be mostly forgotten by Monday.
The Media
The media continues to be a joke during this election. I did a quick scan of the major cable news networks for commentary following the debate and found what I expected to find. CNN was to the left, but not horribly. There seemed to be some attempt to reach balance. They have a decent mix for their panel that brings out both sides.
I thought that maybe the shakeup for MSNBC’s election night coverage would spill over into the debates; I was wrong. Keith Olbermann hosted and his regular liberal entourage alongside. It was pathetic.
Fox seems like it was bent to the right more than it has so far this year. I like Britt Hume and Chris Wallace, so this by far was my favorite coverage. Hume and Wallace are two of the only newsmen who seem to even aim towards good reporting.
Instead of shooting for objectivity, the networks have resorted to airing both perspectives. They are not equal. Where objectivity aims for neutrality, differing perspectives promote competition, thus extending the debate.
