News Execs React to McCain Debate Delay
News organizations greet McCain proposal to postpone debate due to economic crisis as latest twist in dramatic political season.
By Marisa Guthrie -- Broadcasting & Cable, 9/24/2008 5:43:00 PM
News executives greeted Sen. John McCain’s (R-Ariz.) announcement Wednesday that he wanted to postpone Friday's presidential debate due to the U.S. financial crisis as yet another twist in a political season full of twists and turns.
"It's only the latest drama in what is going to end up being the most dramatic campaign season we've had," said Jay Wallace, vice president of news editorial product at Fox News Channel.
"The only thing that is expected in this presidential election is the unexpected," said CNN political director Sam Feist. "And that was proven again today."
McCain, the Republican nominee for president, said he would suspend his campaign and return to Washington, D.C., where lawmakers are hashing out the details of the government's $700 billion bailout plan to revive the troubled financial system.
McCain’s Democratic challenger, Sen. Barack Obama (Ill.), said Wednesday that he was prepared to go forward with the debate.
"It's my belief that this is exactly the time when the American people need to hear from the person ... who will be responsible for dealing with this mess," he said at a news conference.
The Presidential Debate Commission said it would proceed with the Sept. 26 debate at the University of Mississippi, just as news divisions were proceeding with their plans to cover it.
CNN's Election Express bus and several political correspondents were already in place in Oxford, Miss.
Fox News had plans to send correspondents and anchors Thursday, including Shepard Smith, a Mississippi native who attended the University of Mississippi.
"We rarely know more than 24 hours in advance what the candidates are doing," Feist said, "so we're always flying by the seat of our pants."
If McCain does decide to forgo the debate, it will not be easy to reschedule. The planning and security make it all but impossible to relocate the debate to a different date or venue. Television time is negotiated months in advance. And with the broadcast networks in the thick of fall premieres, finding an acceptable alternative to roadblock hours of TV time would be very difficult.
"There is a limited window of opportunity," Wallace said. "Security at these things is months in the planning. And the networks are not going to want to give up real estate. It's crunch time with the fall shows coming on and the baseball playoffs. The networks are there to make money. They're already challenged by the sagging economy. The window is Friday night."
"America is glued to this election," Wallace added. "And I think all of us are hopeful that [the debate] happens."
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Shar, methinks you meant to say some fool's mistakes
Bob in Beijing - 9/25/2008 8:33:00 PM EDT -
If McCain can't multi task is he going to handle one crisis at a time, oh boy we'll be worse off than what we are now. By the time his aide types what he wants on the computer and answer his e-mails for him we'll be knee deep in it. This just proves there needs to be an age cap on the Presidency and a required amount of technical knowledge. As for the 700 billion bail out, they need to have them a fund raiser and let them raise their own money and stay out of my pocket, I'm struggling enough. You figure these top executives are bringing home two-figure million dollar salaries they should have enough sense to know when enough greed will affect others. I get tired of paying for fouls mistakes.
Ms Shar - 9/25/2008 11:58:00 AM EDT -
Boo Hoo to you guys. Spend some time doing your research and do some actual reporting, rather than continue to offer opinion and spin. The debate on foreign issues can be put off. Liquidity has to be restored to the financial markets. This issue is being rushed because it's unlike any other financial meltdown in history. The government is being quiet about this because the freeze on capital could crush our overall economy. Report on the size of the derivatives market vs. say the GDP of the world?
Obama and the media are avoiding facing the issue directly because it was squarely caused by the Democrats under Clinton. This is where I have to stick the finger at Bill Clinton for Fannie Mae pushing suspect mortgages, and rewarding lenders for doing so trying to defeat redlining by revising the Community Re-Investment Act. The repeal of the Glass-Steagall Act in 1999 was a bipartisan agreement by Phil Grahmm, signed by Bill Clinton and fully funded by citi-bank lobbyists. This was the official de-regulation of banking, yet created many conflicts of interests by banks. Read the laws and how they were changed.
So all you Democrats have to realize that this was caused by your parties Demosocialistic irresponsibility, and the US doesn't need any more of it.
Either you can't read, or don't understand economics. I suggest you all read the laws that were created or modified by the Clinton administration, then sit back and THINK. This is how we got into this mess, and now the same Democrats are asking for oversight? I guess Washington can't learn from mistakes.
I wouldn't let Obama run my business, as he's totally inept at anything but running his mouth. His "Community Organization" is a scam and cost $100 Million dollars and had no results. And that was according to his organizations final report, which CAN'T possibly be spun. Why the Obama media can't ever post the truth is disturbing.
Just READ it and use your heads.
//ccsr.uchicago.edu/downloads/p62.pdf
King Pablo - 9/25/2008 10:44:00 AM EDT
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