Media Channel

Viewer Guide To Super Tuesday

It’s not the Super Bowl of politics, but it could be the playoffs. In any event, tonight’s television broadcasts of results from the parties’ presidential-nominating contests mark the closest thing to a national primary day in history.

Never have so many states — 24 of them — held primaries and caucuses on a single day, including California, the biggest convention-delegate trophy by far. There is suspense: By night’s end, a clear Democratic favorite could emerge in the nip-and-tuck battle between Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama, and John McCain could be the apparent Republican nominee….

For political junkies — or casual channel-surfers — what follows is a viewer’s guide for watching the returns. View WSJ Guide Here

TVNewser: What the Networks Are Planning

• ABC — Charlie Gibson, Diane Sawyer and George Stephanopoulos lead five hours of coverage beginning at 8pmET.

• CBS — Katie Couric anchors a 2-hour special at 9pmET along with Bob Schieffer, Jeff Greenfield and CBS News correspondents.

• NBC — Brian Williams anchors a special report at 10pmET with Tim Russert, Tom Brokaw and NBC News correspondents contributing.

• PBS — Jim Lehrer anchors three hours of coverage from 9pmET - Midnight along with Gwen Ifill and Judy Woodruff.

• CNN — 40 hours of non-stop political programming begins at 6amET with American Morning. CNN will air a live studio audience show “CNN-Time America Votes 2008″ anchored by Campbell Brown at Noon (TVNewser will be there.) At 7pmET the prime time election coverage begins, with a midnight Larry King Live.

• FNC — 24-hours straight of live coverage, starting at 5amET with Fox and Friends. At Noon, Alan Colmes and Sean Hannity join Jane Skinner for two hours. Greta Van Susteren and Martha McCallum anchor from 2-4pmET. Neil Cavuto, Shepard Smith and Trace Gallagher anchor from 4-6pmET, before Brit Hume takes over You Decide 2008 coverage.

• HLN — In addition to live election result updates from Richelle Carey, HLN will air live editions of Glenn Beck at 7pmET, 9pmET and Midnight.

• MSNBC — MSNBC will begin its all-day Super Tuesday coverage with Morning Joe at 6amET. The prime time programming runs from 6pmET to 2amET, and is anchored by Chris Matthews and Keith Olbermann.

• BBC — The Beeb’s World News America airs live on BBC America and BBC World News from 7pmET - Midnight.

• CNBC — “Your Money, Your Vote,” anchored by Larry Kudlow airs from 7pm to 9pmET. The program will include coverage from both CNBC and NBC News correspondents.

• Bloomberg — Mike Schneider anchors “Business and the Ballot” coverage from 8pmET to Midnight.
• CSPAN 2 — A simulcast of CBS News Radio from 8pmET to Midnight.

Source: TV Newser

Who Are the Pundits That Are Shaping Our Views?

It’s the same old gang of insiders and Mainstream media folks. NY Times: In Election of Change, TV Gives Voice to Insiders

How To Read The Polls: Four Cautions

Over the last 48 hours we have had an avalanche of new polls, and given the discussion both in our comments section and elsewhere across the blogosphere, everyone seems unsure of what to make of the results and what they say about where things stand, especially in the Democratic presidential race. As is evident from our charts, the trends are highly favorable to both John McCain and Barack Obama, but from there things get murkier, especially in the Democratic race. Here is my sense of what the poll results tell us and what they do not… READ MORE

Independent UK: Inside Story: The People Who Sell Presidents

Behind every ‘Super Tuesday’ there’s a hidden PR bunfight to sell the US presidential candidates’ strengths and conceal their frailties. Stephen Foley unveils the spinmeisters…

BARACK OBAMA

The tension between the new politics that Barack Obama promises and the sharp elbows of traditional debate is felt most keenly inside the Obama media operation, where veteran Democratic party spinmeister David Axelrod has had the resources to build an operation as large and sophisticated as that of the Clinton campaign, but where he has also been trying to instill a calmer, less aggressive approach to dealing with the media… READ MORE

Romney, McCain Exchange Attack Ads

Watch John McCain and Mitt Romney exchange attack ads going into Super Tuesday.

McCain’s ad:

Romney’s ad:

You Choose ‘08 Super Tuesday Video

Watch videos from voters, candidates, and news organizations across the country on YouTube’s Super Tuesday You Choose ‘08

Reporting from Super Tuesday States

HuffPost’s OffTheBus is reporting from Super Tuesday states New York and California. Keep checking in for on-the-ground reports of campaign activity here.

Students for Hillary: No More Promises, We Want Proof by Lakshmi Gandhi
The gathering attracted many younger voters, most of whom stressed Clinton’s legislative record and public policy experience over opponent Barack Obama’s youth and focus on hope.

AUDIO SLIDESHOW: “Apathy and Hope in Atlantic City,” by Joshua Cinelli
“Atlantic City, home to wealthy casinos and extreme poverty, is both apathetic and hopeful about the coming election. Watch the audio slideshow and find out why.”

VIDEO: “On the Trail With Harlem for Obama,” by Dana Oliver
“Dana L. Oliver speaks with the members of this group about its role in the election process, what the people of Harlem want, and why Obama is the right man for the job.”

More on-the-ground reports of campaign activity here.

McCain Wins the Coverage Battle as Media Move to Anoint Him

By generating more coverage than any other candidate last week, and easily outdistancing his GOP rivals, Senator John McCain rode a media narrative of near inevitability last week. Read PEJ Study Here

Florida Did Not End “Obamania” In Network News

Media Tenor’s content analysis of the networks’ campaign show Obama and McCain as TV front runners. “The Florida results have not ended the boost for Obama so far,” said Roland Schatz, President of Media Tenor International. Read Media Tenor’s Campaign Report Here