Sarah Palin and the media: “Frenemies” for life
A contraction of the words friend and enemy, a "frenemie" is simply your enemy, disguised as a friend. "Frenemies can be evil, clever and dastardly people," advises Urban Dictionary, "lulling you into a false sense of security and taking advantage of you."
Generally, the relationship between politicians and the media is a simple exchange. Politicians supply news, and the media provides coverage. It's a give and take relationship that suffers under no false pretences.
Palin, however, has made no bones about her dislike of the US media, particularly "the liberal" kind.
It all started in the days following August 30, 2008. After Palin was announced as Sen. John McCain's vice-presidential nominee on the Republican ticket, she disappeared from view. Ostensibly, it was to prepare her for a media onslaught. But the press needed information immediately, and in the vacuum created by Palin's absence from the spotlight, a media frenzy began.
With only five weeks until the elections, Palin was scrutinised on all levels. Whether it was her 17-year-old daughter's pregnancy, the rumours that her youngest son Trig was actually her daughter's child, her involvement with the firing of a state trooper who refused to fire her brother-in-law in "Troopergate", her love of shooting, or her governance of Alaska; Palin created a media storm without ever actually appearing in it.
Eventually the interviews started. First up was a tough interview with ABC's Charlie Gibson, in which Palin fared well in terms of demeanour, but not in terms of substance. Washington Post columnist Howard Kurtz remarked at the time: "Palin might want to spend more time with McCain's foreign policy gurus."
Alessandra Stanley, a reporter for The New York Times wrote: "Ms. Palin was criticised - and mocked - for appearing to be stumped when Mr. Gibson, on ABC, asked her on the anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks to define the Bush doctrine. The McCain campaign, however, cast the scorn as sexism and media snobbery."
The Gibson interview was followed by an interview with Sean Hannity of Fox News, which the Stanley described as "too soft". And then, a series of interviews with Katie Couric of CBS Evening News; interviews that would spawn some of Saturday Night Live's most popular satirical sketches on Palin's insubstantial knowledge of politics.
During the course of the Couric interviews, McCain was asked to respond to Palin's remark to a young student that she would consider launching cross-border attacks into Pakistan if the situation called for it; a position which the McCain camp had criticised Sen. Barack Obama for having.
In a back-and-forth interview between Couric, McCain and Palin, McCain described the controversial statement as a product of "gotcha journalism".
Suddenly, "gotcha journalism" became the phrase of the day: the mysterious tactic of journalists to produce sensational and controversial sound bites by trapping the interviewee with a particularly contentious question, and then editing footage to highlight their answer.
And yet journalists love to write and talk about her. At Newsweek's recent Women in Leadership conference, discussions about Sarah Palin dominated forums on power, politics and the workplace. Some of the most powerful women in the media praised Palin - not for her political views or credentials, but for her bolshiness and her ownership of her femininity under the scrutiny of the media.
By the time Palin appeared at the vice-presidential debates with Sen. Joe Biden, she was openly grateful about the opportunity to speak straight to the public.
"I like being able to answer these tough questions without the filter, even, of the mainstream media kind of telling viewers what they've just heard," said Palin in her closing statement. "I'd rather be able to just speak to the American people like we just did."
You could almost hear the collective gasp of journalists all across the country. Here was a politician that expressed open distaste about the practices of mainstream media, while campaigning for the second most powerful position in the U.S. government.
Unperturbed, the media continued with attempts at objective criticism. Newsweek used a close-up of Sarah Palin's face for their annual "Women in Leadership" issue. The issue contained a harsh critique of Palin's readiness to be vice-president, and pointed to her inability to articulate her views in interviews.
Palin has used good politics by pitting herself as an everyday American, wrote Newsweek's Jon Meacham. "It makes a strength out of a weakness, always a shrewd tactic," he adds.
The response of the Republican camp to the coverage? A detailed letter that appeared on Newsweek's website, and a public scolding of the magazine for framing Palin in a negative way by not airbrushing her cover photograph.
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Good stuff, Jax! Well done!
by Maile on October 29 2008, 16:02
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a good piece of writing, well done.
by sandra on October 29 2008, 17:16
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Very well put. I enjoyed the article....so did david
by kirsten bischof on October 29 2008, 18:54
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Great article!
by Michelle Pentecost on October 29 2008, 19:59
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I'm amazed any of the media in the US managed to say anything decent at ALL about Sarah Palin. I have been astounded at the bias of the media over there. Of course that, and the fact that Americans are still TERRIFIED of strong women - think Geraldine Ferraro, Hillary Clinton and now Sarah. Funny old nation, the Yanks!
by Palin fan on October 31 2008, 15:45
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