Election Coverage Critique of CNN on 11/4/08

For the 2008 presidential election on November 4, 2008 I turned to CNN to watch their coverage of this historic election. At first I thought CNN would be the obvious choice to go to because where else would be the most comprehensive coverage? However, I found their set-up to be different and not as good as it could have been.
What I really liked was how the CNN studios had the technology to go back to the last election and compare what states are doing in 2004 as compared in 2008, because it was obvious to see the changes whenever they compared it. They could also zoom in so much that they could see how counties varied in voting red or blue. This is particularly interesting in the mid-west where there are numerous small counties throughout the states whereas looking at states with bigger counties such as New Hampshire does not show the same impact that these little counties can have as a collective whole.

I also liked how they had this thing called “voter analysis” which showed what types of people were voting for what side. Although I liked it was kind of odd how they could divide people up like this, I understand how they could by age but “church-going” or “race” did not really make sense to me. They also did not explain it well enough but I deduced that it was from voter registration and who was checking in. However, ballots are supposed to be anonymous so how did they really find this information? They were also able to conclude that this election was not necessarily about race as originally thought but age is what the major factor.
I noticed that CNN seemed to be a lot more conservative with their projections by prefacing them by saying things like “it’s still really early” and “we’re being conservative here” because of the past two elections that were called way too early. Not only were they called too early but were completely off base by calling the democratic candidates when it was really the republican candidate that had won. They also told us numerous times what exactly comprises their project: exit polls, analysis and actualities (the numbers).

Overall, I did not like the set up of the CNN coverage. They had too many people and too many of them spent their time on screen arguing. They had two hosts (Wolf Blitzer and Cooper Anderson), which I thought was good but then they had a group of five analysts (three white men, one African-American man and one white woman) who really did not seem to respect each other’s opinions. They would say something and then all of them would jump all over each other. After talking to them they would go to another table where there were four more analysts (three white men, one African-American woman) they would also do analysis and they seemed to respect each other more so than the first table of analysts. This also leads to less confusion because I could actually follow the discussion whereas the other analysts argued so much that I could not follow their analysis. There were also a man and a women doing the “voter analysis” as well as for the “state by state analysis” there was a man and a women. However, I did think that there was an even dispersion between republican and democrat analysts.
As for the website, it covered a lot of the same information the television station did however, without the analysis which could potentially be better just because some of them were so hard to follow. The website had links to CNN TV as well as CNN Radio meaning you could see election coverage from nearly every venue of media if you were not already watching it on television. You could also check into Obama and McCain headquarters to see what is going on there. They also allow you to make your own projections early on in the election so one can physically see how the electoral collage actually works. It also allowed you to go back to at least four elections and see how the elections worked out.

Later on in the broadcast near 10-10:30 they begin talking about how McCain would have to take the rest of the states to win the 270 electoral votes. However, the man who was running the state analysis seemed to have only pessimistic thoughts for McCain and he “bet on [his] life that the west coast will go to Obama” and that “[he was not] trying to be mean but it’s bleak”.

At 10:56 they began discussing as if the election was already over, which really was not the case although four minutes later it technically was. I really was not expecting the election to be decided by 11:00 PM because of what happened in the past two elections. However, they projected Obama because there was no way McCain would catch up in the electoral votes, which makes sense. After they announced that projection they showed various shots of the United States celebrating as well as around the world in places such as Kenya. Then they had the analysts go through their thoughts on this historic event. I really enjoyed seeing different perspectives especially those that were of minority and who were on the other side. I was surprised that shortly after many of the analysts left as CNN began to be more focused on the celebrations and even interviewed Martin Luther King Jr’s youngest daughter, which I thought was a nice touch.

As a whole CNN and CNN.com did a good job covering this election. However, they should have taken a few measures to have it be great coverage. First off if they had less analysts there would be less arguing and less confusion, all of which I think would be better. If they promised to be extra conservative they should not have been projecting at the rate they were projecting. Minutes after states polls would close CNN would immediately pull up a projection on the screen, without any ballot numbers coming in! They also seemed to have a slight tilt towards Obama simply because of the numbers piling up quickly in his favor, they were quick to project that he would become president, which I personally did not mind but I had not expected to find out the results until the next morning. All of these things are something to consider for CNN, for the election in 2012!

SNL & Sarah Palin – Who would’ve thought?

Here I am on SNL!! Thanks NBC for the video.


October 18, 2008

After much pleading from SNL as well as John’s advisors I decided to make my appearance on the show. I was really excited to meet Tina Fey because despite some odd jokes about me I have always been a fan of hers. Her movie Mean Girls? Totally helped me understand my oldest, Bristol and hopefully it will help with both Willow and Piper!

Anyway…I met the whole cast plus Tina Fey. They were all really nice to me and seemed to be genuinely funny people. None of them cracked jokes from previous skits which I was grateful for. I think that they definitely do the skits but then are completely normal just like any other celebrity. We had a run through earlier this afternoon and I think that my parts are pretty funny. I think fans of SNL will be impressed with my comedic acting chops!


Opening act

Standing there with Lorne was funny because usually I’m at home or on the campaign trail watching them. This time I was prepared for the jabs Tina was going to use unlike the other times when I felt as if I was blindsided and did not appreciate it. This time I found them funnier but still found her impersonation off, which I was allowed to illustrate through my comments while standing with Lorne and Mark Wahlberg. I loved when Alec Baldwin came into the scene pretending I was Tina and complaining about me! I thought the audience would enjoy that little twist because I know when reading the initial script I thought that would be a nice touch to it and it played out very well! Watching Tina on the screen, nearly in person…it was uncanny how the make-up department highlighted our similarities just by changing her hair and glasses. However, my absolute favorite moment of the night was when Tina had to excuse herself and we went past each other. You can see the height difference that Tina talked about on David Letterman on Friday but its hilarious (especially when viewing after taping) how Tina does not look at me…but I do kind of smirk at her. It was an honor to be able to say “LIVE FROM NEW YORK….IT’S SATURDAY NIGHT!”. After years of watching the show it was simply thrilling to be able to do this. I love having this opportunity of being on the campaign trail for the Republican Party, I get all of these perks such as going to SNL, throwing the ceremonial first puck to a few NHL hockey games and getting an incredible wardrobe, it’s quite the life!


Rap

I’m Jermiah Wright cause tonight I’m the preacha
I got a bookish look and you’re all hot for teacha
Todd lookin’ fine on his snow machine
so hot boy gonna need a go between
in Wasilla we just chill baby chilla
but when I see oil lets drill baby drill - SNL

I truly loved the rap. I thought it was a good way to wrap up my stint on SNL for the night. I did not think I could even dare trying to make it through the rap with a straight face, only Amy Poheler would be able to pull it off. And she did, I had a ball bouncing along to the rap along with the anchor. It was even better that Todd had a special appearance dancing along and pointing to Alaska. The moose was a little much but it summed up my message of just being a regular Alaskan! I hope that it got people talking, which I’m sure it did because no one truly believed I was actually going to do something like this. People seem to think being one of the first women with potential of ending up in the White House that I am more fragile than the men running, which simply is not true. I have been able to see that an impersonation of me and cracks about me simply put me on an equal playing field, I was just lucky to be able to enjoy it instead of taking it the wrong way.


Wrap-up

Overall, being on SNL was both an honor and privilege for me. I had grown up watching it up in Alaska, always dreaming maybe one day I could make an appearance. I had no idea it would happen in the circumstances that it did – i.e. Tina Fey doing an impersonation of me as the Republic vice-presidential candidate. People have mentioned how our looks are similar but I had no idea how much. I was blessed to have this chance and will frame that photo of Tina and me together with both our autographs because win or lose this has been the ride of a lifetime. Two weeks are left and I am going to show America the maverick that I am. Don’t forget vote for John McCain and me, Sarah Palin! Do it! :)

The Tina Fey Effect - What if Sarah Palin and Tina Fey switched bodies for a day?

What if John McCain won the 2008 presidential election? SNL continues their skits mocking Sarah Palin but what if somehow Tina Fey wound up in Sarah Palin’s shoes for the night? The night of the inaugural ball?


Source



January 20, 2009


“Tina, over here!” the paparazzi yelled out from all different directions as I stood on the red carpet to my latest movie premiere. The fans began chanting “Tina”. Smiling at my fans and mouthing “Thank You”. I grabbed my husband, Jeff’s hand as I was quickly directed to the lobby of the movie theater where they immediately had me sit down to sign some autographs.

Glancing over to the small TV stationed in the lobby of the theater I could not help but recognize Sarah Palin as well as John McCain on the screen. With a sigh, I realize that it is January 20, 2009…Inaugural Day in Washington.
McCain had won the 2008 presidential election on November 4th after a close race with Barack Obama. It once again hit me that I would be impersonating for four very long years. Focusing back on my fans for who I was autographing I let myself forget about it.

Eventually it came time to play my film. Usually I stay back and let the director and whoever else wants to have the chance to talk about the movie but this movie is near and dear to my heart. I stood in front of the audience and talked about the movie.

In the midst of thanking the numerous people that had a role in making the movie possible as well as pushing me to be the best I could be, I winked in my husband’s direction. I suddenly felt dizzy and felt as if I was being sucked backwards….

* * *

When I looked up again I was no longer in California at a movie premiere…in front of me were thousands of people dressed up in tuxes and cocktail dresses staring expectantly at me. I was no longer in the burgundy dress designed especially for me by my designer David Meister. Instead, I’m in an itchy, green dress that I would never have chosen for myself.

Looking to my left and right, I see John McCain, his wife Cindy as well as Todd Palin. Craning my neck I try to find Sarah Palin but she is nowhere in sight. Worried I look down and see a typed speech and realize the glasses I have on are not the cute stylish black framed ones I had chosen out years ago instead they are exactly like the ones in the prop room of SNL that I wear when I am…. oh no..

Smiling nervously I quickly skim the paper and start to ramble. I begin speaking normally and when I begin to receive strange looks I realize my error, I quickly transition to my Sarah Palin voice and everyone looked a lot more comfortable. “Thank you for inviting me and let’s get this dance party started!” I winked hoping I would get back to my movie premiere but no such luck as I made my way and sat down next to Todd.

“Great job,” he whispered, kissing me on the cheek. I simply smiled and nodded as John and Cindy took the dance floor for the first official dance of the Inaugural Ball. Before I knew it Todd was taking my hand and pulling me to the dance floor. I could only hope that Sarah was not a closet So You Think You Can Dance fan and a fabulous dancer. I could hold my own but who knows what Todd had up his sleeve.

I did not have to worry because the dancing did not last long. One slow dance and I was off to schmooze with various political people. As I made my way around the room saying hello I realized how many political figures in our government I did not know. They all greeted me as if we had been best friends for the longest time, which I knew could not possibly be true since she was governor in Alaska and not a DC insider. They asked after the kids who unfortunately, I did not even know the names to. I finally sat down for a minute, kicking off my heels to rub my uncomfortable feet. Sarah could’ve at least had comfortable shoes since her dress was so uncomfortable, I muttered to myself only to see John McCain looking at me strangely. I quickly slipped my shoes back on and sat up straight.

A waiter came over and whispered that there was a phone call for me in the hallway. I quickly excused myself and was led to the phone.
“Mom, it’s me!” yelled a girl’s voice over a crying baby and a crying kid.
“What’s going on?”
“Well Trig won’t stop crying so Piper started whining and I got mad then she started to cry…” the girl trailed off helplessly.
“Well, sweetie, did you try feeding Trig and apologizing to Piper?” She named her kid Trig? Seriously?
“I’ve tried everything!”
“How about singing?” I blurted out.
“Will you sing to him?” she begged. I began to panic because I do not have the best singing voice and what if the kid just kept on crying because he could just instinctively know that it was not his mom. I quietly began to sing Hush Little Baby and that immediately quieted both of the kids.
“Thanks Mom,” the girl whispered hanging up the phone as I heaved a sigh of relief.


“Who was that?” Todd questioned as soon as I came back into the ball room.
“Just the kids, don’t worry they’re fine,” he nodded happily.
“You heard from Track today, right?” Wait a minute...she named a kid Track too?
“Yes,”
“He sounded good don’t you think?”
“Uh huh,”
“I know you’re worried about him, he’ll be fine.” Worried I was going to bomb this conversation was more like it I looked around for distractions and saw John McCain coming over, another person I would not want to talk to. I quickly excused myself and made a beeline for the ladies room.

Leaning against the sink I stared into the mirror wondering how long I would have to pretend to be Sarah Palin. I didn’t really mean I would get sick of playing her at SNL! I thought frantically trying to appease the Gods and let me get back to my life. Maybe, just maybe being Sarah Palin was harder than I thought. I winked in the mirror thinking again that was the key to going back to California but nothing happened, with a sigh I went back to the ballroom hoping the night would get easier and that I would return to my life shortly.

The rest of the night I continued to play the part, pretending I was on SNL, only more serious than funny. I did not think any lifeline or Joe Six Pack references would get me anywhere with this crowd. I faked my way through racking my brain to remember names, which occasionally I did but other times I simply fake smiled.

Eventually the evening was winding down both Todd and I said our good-byes. As I was leaving there were paparazzi calling out “Sarah, over here!”. I smiled and had a sense of déjà vu from earlier that day at my movie premiere. I posed for a few pictures but then Secret Service ushered us into the limo.

We got into the limo where Todd talked and I simply listened. I took in the sights of Washington…I had not had a chance to visit in quite a while. Todd began talking about how nice the Vice President’s mansion would be to make a home. Apparently they had already decided to have a “family zone” similar to Al Gore’s tenure in the mansion on the second floor with no secret service.

Once we arrived back at the hotel we checked on the kids, three of whom were asleep (Willow, Piper and Trig) with Bristol was up watching television baby-sitting the brood (Todd had said all their names at the hotel, I caught on quickly). We tucked them all in and we began to get ready for bed. I had no idea what Sarah’s routine was so I just did my routine as closely as possible before getting into bed. While lying in the hotel room, I could only hope that when I woke up I would be in my own bed with my own husband and child. I closed my eyes and drifted off to dreamland….

* * *

Waking up I was immediately comforted by the familiar scent of my covers smelling like my laundry detergent. I had never been as happy as I was in that moment. Doing the SNL skits impersonating Sarah Palin is completely different from having her life being a hockey mom vice-president is definitely tougher than I could ever imagine! Luckily as I go downstairs and start making breakfast with my husband I lead a life that I love but I think the Sarah Palin skits are over, I don’t ever want to wind up stuck in her life, can you imagine? If I had trouble one night in her shoes, I could never, ever be her permanently.

Twitters of Hillary Rodham Clinton Re: VP Debate October 2, 2008

Well here we go again….another debate I should have been a part of.
7:59 PM on October 2, 2008 from web

My suits are better than the Governor’s suits. Why does she always go for the skirt? How about a good pantsuit Sarah!! Note to self: give number of my tailor to her.
8:01 PM on October 2, 2008 from web

Of course you can call him Joe...you would know that if knew any Washington politicians other than John!
8:01 PM on October 2, 2008 from web

Joe is right on the nose with the Bailout bill…
8:03 PM on October 2, 2008 from web

“Team of mavericks” What is with that phrase…what does it mean exactly?
8:05 PM on October 2, 2008 from web

Maverick: Being independent in thought and action or exhibiting such independence (dictionary.com). If that were true of the McCain campaign would that mean they should run as independents?
8:08 PM on October 2, 2008 from web

“Never again” is true however that doesn’t explain how the McCain campaign plans on helping with these issues. Joe is definitely taking this question more seriously than Sarah. I voted for that increase Sarah’s talking about as did John, Joe and Barack, she needs a fact checker.
8:11 PM on October 2, 2008 from web

Another mistake by Sarah…she definitely needs a fact checker. Joe never said it’s patriotic to raise taxes, he said that it was patriotic to pay taxes, that’s quite the difference.
8:14 PM on October 2, 2008 from web

Where’s Tina Fey when I need her?
8:15 PM on October 2, 2008 from web

Yes, Sarah, you’ve only been at it for 5 weeks citing your inexperience. And there hasn’t been a whole lot because you’re only parroting John.
8:20 PM on October 2, 2008 from web

John McCain did vote against funding for new alternative energy sources…ridiculous. Drilling vs. no drilling is defined by your party, Palin should know this already.
8:25 PM on October 2, 2008 from web

Wow, you both agree on something…that’s a pretty rare find especially in debates.
8:37 PM on October 2, 2008 from web

Barack and George are closer in their plans for the Iraq War leaving John out of it. However, Barack like me has promised troops to be gone by mid-2010. Hopefully that works.
8:40 PM on October 2, 2008 from web

John wants the Iraq war to be a 100 year war. No end in sight. It needs to end, soon.
8:43 PM on October 2, 2008 from web

You must sit and talk with these leaders. You can’t just have an agreement and expect our allies and friends to believe we won’t go back on our word without official face-to-face conversations.
8:46 PM on October 2, 2008 from web

This administration is an abject failure. How can this not be acknowledged? You must look back at your past to learn! As Joe just said, “past is prologue”
8:48 PM on October 2, 2008 from web

Maverick….again. Give it a rest!
8:51 PM on October 2, 2008 from web

George and John’s policies are very similar. Remember, democrats are all about change!
8:52 PM on October 2, 2008 from web

It’s Army General David D. McKiernan!! Not McClellan I would’ve remembered his name and said the right one.
8:56 PM on October 2, 2008 from web

I don’t think Sarah really watched all our debates…especially the democratic ones!
9:01 PM on October 2, 2008 from web

We’ve already “won” the war according to Bush, Sarah!
9:02 PM on October 2, 2008 from web

God forbid that cliché would come true but I would’ve been better candidate as a “heartbeat” away from the President position than Joe….
9:02 PM on October 2, 2008 from web

It will be the most important election since 1932. I wish I was a part of it as to who to vote for.
9:04 PM on October 2, 2008 from web


Mavericks! Doesn’t mean the whole policies will be the same…
9:06 PM on October 2, 2008 from web


I know what a VP must do day to day and I would have considered it, never would have I made a “lame” joke about that.
9:10 PM on October 2, 2008 from web

It’ll be interesting to see how either of these VP roles will be.
9:12 PM on October 2, 2008 from web


Oh no, now Joe is using the word maverick! Good, it’s to prove how John isn’t a maverick. Totally agree, it’s more of the same with George.
9:18 PM on October 2, 2008 from web

We’ll see how this plays out; it’ll be interesting to watch this race for the next month even if I am not directly involved in it. Go Democrats!
9:30 PM on October 2, 2008 from web

P.S. Tip for Sarah: buy some pantsuits! My tailor’s number: 202-555-1234.
9:36 PM on October 2, 2008 from web

Blog Response 4

This week I looked at Interactive Narratives again. As I was exploring the website I found a link to Political Pumpkins so I was curious to see how politics and pumpkins could be combined in one website. Clicking on the link led me to a gallery of eleven different pumpkins somehow tied to the election and campaign trail. There are pumpkins for democrats, republicans or even voting. When clicking on the pumpkin you can either enlarge it or click to download a template to print out so you too can make pumpkins with your political preferences. I find this creative because some people really do like to show their political pride and instead of doing so with those big signs that everyone has, why not do so with pumpkins? This is simply a creative take on politics and it’s so interesting to see just how obscure some interactive projects are. I never thought to look up pumpkin carving online but now I will have to look it up for whatever I want to carve in case they have templates like this website. Even more interesting is that it comes from the Associated Press of all places and it is not just some random person who came up with this concept on a private website.

Blog Response 3

10/07/2008 – This week I decided to check out Poynter Online. I found an article that made me wonder why it would be published but after reading the excerpt and clicking on the link I found the article entertaining and interesting. I clicked on a blog entry entitled “Chip on Your Shoulder” which went on to explain another entry from someone else entitled "Diagramming Sarah: Can Palin's sentences stand up to a grammarian?". The article diagrams some of Sarah Palin’s most confusing comments in her interviews with Charlie Gibson, Sean Hannity and Katie Couric that have led to a drop in her approval ratings. According to the author many people believe diagramming sentences “diagramming a sentence provides insight into the mind of its perpetrator” (slate.com). I found this interesting because I already knew many of Palin’s comments during these interviews have been utterly ridiculous but seeing it from the grammar perspective made all the more of an impact. If someone who prides themselves on being able to dissect sentences to give insight into whoever is speaking cannot translate them, then you know what Palin is saying does not make any sense at all, it worries me that she could potentially be the vice president of the United States. I also found it entertaining because it showed pictures of the diagrammed sentences, showing how absurd her comments are. It also proves to me that almost anything can be written on a blog and read!

Print vs. Online Journalism

The article “Bailout Plan Rejected, Markets Plunge, Forcing New Scramble to Solve Crisis” from The Wall Street Journal and Lawmakers scramble for new bailout plan from MSNBC.com cover the same information but are very different because of the mediums they are posted through.

The Wall Street Journal is an elite newspaper and it shines through in this article with the use of sophisticated vocabulary and how much more information is crammed into the article as opposed to my MSNBC.com article. The article from WSJ is not only longer but it covers more topics as indicated from the title than the article online. The WSJ article goes into detail about how stocks reacted to the rejection of the bailout plan, what happened with the bailout plan for the first half of the article before transitioning into talking about what the government could potentially do now.

Meanwhile, the MSNBC.com article mostly focuses on what our government is currently doing to create new ideas to fix the financial crisis with a brief synopsis of what happened yesterday. The WSJ goes more into depth for the big picture while MSNBC.com focuses on a small piece of the big picture with links to other articles for the rest of the story, a benefit of online journalism.

The WSJ actually has a box at the end of the article indicating a more interactive element than it would be otherwise. Reader interaction is much more frequent online by allowing readers to post their comments or thoughts similar to letters in print. Having a connection to online allows them to continue to compete against the solely online projects.

Print journalism is tangible which depending on which generation one is from is better than the other. However, print cannot be updated as the day goes on, which is what online journalism can do but sometimes links do not work and are harder to find. Both present similar information it is just a matter of how it is posted, what demographic they are going for, length of articles and so on.

Articles:
The Wall Street Journal: Bailout Plan Rejected, Markets Plunge, Forcing New Scramble to Solve Crisis
MSNBC.com: Lawmakers scramble for alternate bailout plan