TVSquad

Now that the confetti has been swept away, all the balloons popped, and the St. Paul cops are stowing their riot gear, it's time to recall the surprisingly eventful Republican National Convention in Minnesota. Is it really only one week ago today that Senator John McCain pulled a rabbit out of his hat and introduced little-known Alaska Governor Sarah Palin as his running mate? She's not little-known anymore. In fact, the 2008 Republican Convention is forever more to be remembered for her ascent, whatever her future portends.

Here's some other thoughts from the TV coverage of the RNC:

Media matters
Having the two political conventions back to back was a plus for the TV pros. All the mistakes from Denver were rectified in St. Paul. The MSNBC set ups avoided train stations and noise interruptions. Splitting up Keith Olbermann and Chris Matthews worked better, with Olbermann as the point man throwing the coverage to the other news pros. And there was less bickering and fighting, at least compared to the week before.

Gustav
This had to be the first time ever an imminent weather disaster -- which thankfully never materialized into epic scale -- caused a major change in a political convention. These cons only come around every four years, remember. They're a very big deal for their parties and the Republicans had to be ticked off about Monday night being a wash out. The network anchors were all in New Orleans or nearby in case Gustav became Katrina, and the Republican con got off on the wrong foot. However, hidden in that coverage of Gustav was Sarah Palin's bombshell revelation about her daughter Bristol's pregnancy.

Oops
You think they'd learn after Jesse Jackson's Fox moment. But no. There was a great off-camera gotcha when Reagan speechwriter Peggy Noonan and Republican strategist Mike Murphy were caught on an MSNBC open mic. Check it out:

All Palin all the time
For someone who was an unknown a week ago and was only seen on camera a short time over the four (really three) days of the convention, Palin got most of the TV coverage. NBC dispatched a reporter to Alaska, Savannah Guthrie, and her reports from Wasilla reinforced the Sarah-small-town success storyline. When Sarah Palin finally addressed the convention on Wednesday, the only way she could fail was to have a breakdown on stage. She didn't. Her pitch-perfect performance -- presenting a speech she did not write, so they weren't her own words -- proved that she's an adept politician. She looked good, sounded homey (that accent sounds like Edie McClurg), and energized that St. Paul crowd. The reviews were strong, the Nielsen numbers boffo. The shock to me was how condescending and snippy her speech was. She didn't write it, but she delivered cutting lines like a pro. I don't know if that helps her win over Hillary votes.

Pat Buchanan
I thought he'd pop a blood vessel over Sarah Palin. This is a man in love, politically speaking.

St. Paul
On TV, the arena looked considerably smaller than the one the Democrats used in Denver. Also, while the reconfigured stage for McCain's acceptance speech was different, it was window dressing. There was no matching Obama's stadium visuals. As TV spectacle, fireworks trump balloons. One more thought: that huge video screen was annoying. During McCain's speech, he was framed by green lawns (that looked like green screen) and blue skies. It was distracting.

Baby talk
The media has been all over the Palin baby stories -- and yes, there are more than one -- carefully treading the line between tabloid sensationalism and responsible journalism. Kudos to Obama for immediately coming out and telling the press that children are off limits, evening reminding them that his mother was on 18 when she gave birth to him. Still, the baby story was covered extensively, fueling the McCain campaign to call a war with the media. They're now saying that Palin will not be doing Meet the Press, Face the Nation, not even The View. Media blackout. The last time I recall this kind of hatred of the media was Nixon and the Watergate years.

On the other hand... Campbell Brown
Maybe it was Campbell Brown's interview with McCain rep Tucker Bounds that caused the McCain camp to turn on the press. Brown was persistent in her questioning of Bounds, asking for specifics about Sarah Palin. Bounds was not prepared to answer and things got testy. The next day, an email campaign denouncing Brown was all over the net. Ouch.


Drinking game
Okay, every time the Democrats say Scranton, take a drink. Every time a Republican says POW, take a drink. I realize the latter is a sensitive subject, but McCain has said he would never use this part of his biography in campaigning, but the story was told at least six times during the convention. I respect and admire John McCain's courage. It's time to stop talking about the Hanoi Hilton.

CNN twins
Is it just me or are Wolf Blitzer and Anderson Cooper starting to look alike? If AC grows a beard...

Leave that baby home
I did not like the way little Trig Palin was passed around like a loaf of bread. Why was a five-month old infant at the arena at all? He's never going to remember the night. The baby was used like a prop and I was offended. If Sarah Palin wants to prove she's a great mother, protect the baby and keep him home or in the care of a nurse or family. I have no problem with the rest of the Palins appearing, but the baby was being used.