Liberal sneers

Michele Easton:

Regardless of how well Sarah Palin does in Thursday's debate, conservatives would be astounded if the major media acknowledged her success.

For the most part, the media have decided the appropriate response to the governor is to sneer, and sneering at great conservative leaders, from Ronald Reagan to Rush Limbaugh, has been a liberal pastime for decades.

What makes Gov. Palin unique from the other three candidates in this race is she seems so normal. She worked her way through college, married a good local guy, stayed home with her children for several years and has an impressive professional resume as well.

Millions of Americans never really related to Hillary Clinton on a personal level, what with her Wellesley and Yale education and lobbying/legal work.

Then there was her sticking with Bill while he womanized. It made women wrinkle their brows and question her judgment, even as they noted her hard work to promote liberal ideas.

Katie Couric is a master sneerer. She's never done a fair interview with a conservative woman — ever. It's hard to imagine why campaign strategists waste Palin's time preparing for and sitting through Couric's brand of liberal "gotcha" journalism.

Couric's half-lidded eyes and unbearable condescension toward a woman whose achievements, personal and professional, are so superior to her own were excruciating to watch. But we could have predicted Couric's disparaging questions and snide looks before the interview aired.

Viewership of Couric's "CBS Evening News" show has been in the tank ever since she took over. Letting her interview Palin elevated attention for Couric in a way she couldn't do on her own.

Palin should stop wasting time on mainline media interviews that are predisposed to be critical. She should spend her time addressing the crowds of tens of thousands who want to see her whenever they can.

If press interviews are granted, the criterion should be: "Has the interviewer ever done a fair interview with a conservative woman?" That would save the governor a lot of energy and let her share her message with the millions of Americans hungry to hear more from her.

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I agree with Easton. Compare the unfair Couric interview with the one she had with Hugh Hewitt and the difference is stunning.

Last night I noted the ridiculous response of Couric and the media to a question to Palin about naming Supreme Court cases. The fair way to ask that question is to name the issue in cases and get her reaction to those issues. Instead she was given an open ended question of naming the Supreme Court cases with which she disagreed. That is just ridiculous and unfair. The question should be "What do you think about the decision banning the death penalty for rapist?" Do that for each issue you think might be important and you will get an idea of the candidates point of view.

Bill O'Reilly pointed out the absurdity of Couric's question in the first segment asking her to name McCain's position on regulatory matters over his career. But he is one of the few voices of sanity in analyzing the unfair media approach.

Palin should not waste her time with more liberal media stars. She should talk to conservative media where she has a fair shot at getting her message out.