Gwen Ifill: Biased Against Follow-Up Questions!
OK. The Veep Debate is over. Perhaps the most hyped debate ever turned out to be a bit of a snooze. While Slate's press critic warned that the format was going to be a problem–a rapid pace of 90-second answers which could only lead to sound bites–I still hoped for fireworks. In Palin's case, the 90-second answers turned into non-answers and sound bites that could be read/scanned from index cards.
Forget which candidate won or lost. Gwen Ifill was the real loser here. Could she have bothered to press either candidate (but especially Palin) when they refused–sometimes openly refused–to answer her questions. Or how about a follow-up when Palin suggested expanding the veep's authority? Or what about healthcare? Ifill couldn't even press Palin after the candidate dodged a softball on the candidates' weaknesses. Or when Palin said this.
I would have also appreciated Ifill challenging Biden on how the Dems would leave Iraq. And what he thought about Amtrak's pretty crummy snack options.
Don't believe me that Ifill is biased against follow-ups? Slate agrees: Ifill lost this debate.
Anyway. Check out our live blogging over at the Sexist while you watch Keith.
*photo via Huffington Post.
11:42 pm
Palin exceeded the lowest of low expectations, but watching her made my blood boil. please don't wink at me!!
that said, i'm glad that someone finally called McCain out for not being such a "maverick".
gwen should have reined them both in, particularly when Palin completely changed the subject to go back and talk more about how Alaska is an energy producing state, and we need to do all we can to tap those resources. answer.the.question!
10:11 am
Palin speaks in falsehoods and platitudes but it is her phony intonations that I thoight were particularly off-putting last night. She’s a fake.
12:53 pm
Yes, she is. Singularly evasive, that Palin woman, quite cringe-inducing too. She is “exceptional”, eh? An exceptional example of petty-bourgeois smugness, perhaps.
I’m surprised the polar bears weren't mentioned.