Candidates tussle for media spotlight

Candidates tussle for media spotlightLos Angeles - It was meant to be Barack Obama's big moment - his first speech as his party's official candidate for president.

The preparations had been painstaking - a mass rally at a Denver football field designed to showcase the popular appeal that had allowed Obama to leapfrog the Clinton political machine and become the first black presidential nominee.

But if Obama thought that his opponent John McCain would sit back Thursday night and applaud admiringly he had another think coming.

The Vietnam vet and former POW has based his candidacy on a reputation as a political maverick who never gives up fighting. And while the Democrats now question his independent streak, there's no doubting his feisty personality.

So as speaker after speaker praised Obama during the Democrats' convention, there was McCain crashing the party during the television advertising breaks, showcasing a Democratic woman who whispered that it was OK to vote for the Republican guy.

Other ads brazenly pounded home the message that has become the central theme of his campaign: that the 47-year-old Obama was a media-hyped celebrity who wasn't ready to lead.

The opposing camp mocked Obama for setting his speech against an outdoor backdrop that resembled a Greek temple and planned a big moment for McCain of his own.

McCain was due to announce his running mate Friday, ahead of the Republican Party's nominating convention Monday through Thursday in St Paul, Minnesota. The timing was meant to help quickly shift news coverage from the Democrats' Denver party to the Republican ticket.

Republican advisors also spoke of a "historic" new ad that would air during the speech in battleground states in which McCain would address Obama directly.

Whether such tactics will work is another question, as Obama and his advisors have so far proved masterful in handling the media.

Take the resolution of the Clinton psychodrama as one example. A major theme of the convention coverage was whether Hillary Clinton and her ex-president husband Bill would give their full backing to Obama after their hard-fought primary battles.

The potential for conflict made a great story - with media pundits waxing endlessly about the possible split.

But the drama got the inevitable ending it deserved when Hillary made a speech in which she strongly endorsed her former opponent and then made a surprise appearance on the convention floor to propose "in the spirit of unity" that Obama be named the candidate by acclamation. Bill Clinton reinforced the support in his prime-time speech by declaring that Obama "is the man for the job."

Taking particular note of the moment was the Republican response team, using a small studio close to the Dems' confab to pour out a constant stream of rebuttals and talking points to the blogosphere.

Among the tactics - volunteers handing out T-shirts in Denver with the slogan: "Not Ready '08: A Mile High, an Inch Deep." They even held a "Hillary Happy Hour" during Michelle Obama's speech Monday in which they enticed disappointed supporters of Hillary Clinton with free cocktails.

Yet for all the interest and drama in what might be the most closely watched US election in recent years, the major television networks think viewers prefer the usual staple of sit-coms and reality shows to comprehensive coverage of the political conventions.

They are limiting political reporting to an hour of prime time a night, which will continue for the Republicans next week. And though the cable news networks are offering round-the-clock coverage, critics charge that they portray the elections as a horse race, pitting TV-ready personalities against one another.

"Obama is the inexperienced firebrand, McCain the seasoned, straight-talking maverick," says media critic Timothy Karr. "This drama may play well on the small screen, but it accomplishes little towards informing voters about the candidates' political views." (dpa)