John Batchelor, known to RBO/RW readers from both earlier articles and his Sunday night radio show (RBO posts each week’s program schedule), wrote September 4, 2008:
The TV Numbers
Nielsen is reporting that Sarah Palin scored 37.2 million viewers on only six networks, while Obama’s fake Greek column remarks of Thursday 28 August scored 38.3 million on ten networks (that included BET and Univision and Telemundo). In sum, the governor outscored the senator easily, and her demographics were strikingly female and older — meaning the high percentage voter groups. Sarah Palin’s performance was better than better. It was lights out. It was a five-run homer. It was everything trendy you can say. This was a speech that launched a thousand ships and will be pointed to as an example of presidential campaign success for the next decades. And why did it work? The “Network” answer explains the mystery of why some speeches are greater than all others: “Because you’re on television, dummy!”
Scranton, Pennsylvania
These numbers also explain why both Obama in Pennsylvania (left, in York, Pa) and Biden in Virginia are speaking of Sarah Palin today. They want to get into the news cycle, and she is the news cycle. The Obama Team has not found an answer to Palin. The polls right now are fickle and favor the big O, yet what is clear to all is that the Palin numbers are coming next week. Palin’s star power includes the ability to tell a story and to jab Obama. The senator does not like it. She is trash talking him, and his good sports sense moved him to the sports metaphor: “I’ve been called worse on the basketball court.”
Very nice, and it underlines that he thinks he is getting scored on. He’s ahead, but he knows the other team is making a run. Why is he in Pennsylvania, which is deep blue? Because that is where he must fight the leaking. Why not spend the next week in Ohio, where he must win the purples? Because Pennsylvania is trouble for him. Joe Biden is supposed to help in Scranton. Not enough yet. Sarah Palin mentioned Scranton in her speech. Scranton is where Obama does not succeed so far, and he must. Scranton is where Mrs. Clinton lived as a child.
Scranton is PUMA territory. And who drove the TV numbers up last night? PUMA
Our citizens may be deceived for awhile, and have been deceived; but as long as the presses can be protected, we may trust to them for light.--Thomas Jefferson.
PA isn’t as deep blue as they would have you think. Once the people in the center and northern tier counties get to know Sarah Palin, Obama is going to regret that “guns ‘n god” crack he made when he thought nobody was recording. She will appeal to the Reagan Democrats.
Someone once said: The best place to study dignity is where it is missing and Obama lends us
an encyclopedia on the topic. What struck me about Gov. Palin is the extraordinary dignity with
which she was able to carry herself despite the searing and disgraceful treatment by the MSM.
There are many rural areas in PA that will not go for Obama. I know. I have relatives there. Obama will win in the cities, no doubt.
But the rural folks will not take kindly to trashing a mother, an infant, and a 17 y/o girl.