Leave a comment

so_bambiesque May 6 2010, 09:13:55 UTC
Ok, can a US (or anyone else who doesn't live in Britain, I guess) tell me something...

How much coverage has there been in the mainstream media? Has it been featured on news bulletins (that cannot be slept right) and been prominently shown in newspapers? Eg. If you weren't members of ontd_political and didn't go out of your way to look at this stuff, would you know as much about the election?

I think back to 2008 and the US election was everywhere in the UK. Obama sneezed and it was practically the main headline, whereas I would be surprised if we generated the same amount of coverage. *Shrugs* Just wonderin'

Reply

arathesane May 6 2010, 09:28:10 UTC
I am not sure I can accurately say because I always supplement my media intake with UK sources anyway(and I'm a news junkie), but it seems to have been covered a lot. More than it usually has been in the past. They aired the debates on CSPAN(not live, of course) and it's been featured on every major network, CNN, MSNBC, PBS, NPR, all the major dailies, and I have no idea about FOX but I am guessing they have covered it. And of course, it has been featured on The Daily Show!

But I am reasonably sure that is not anywhere near the same level of coverage. Beyond Obama's appeal and star power there's the fact that our election season literally goes on for years. Yours, in contrast, is so short that it, well, it doesn't take our media by surprise exactly but they're not as prepared for it.

Reply

akuma_river May 6 2010, 09:38:32 UTC
It was too live!

The last one at least and then they re-run it.

Reply

arathesane May 6 2010, 09:40:54 UTC
Oh, I watched the last one via the BBC webstream, I thought they had just re-ran it because they re-ran the others. Of maybe I am wrong about those too? I didn't realize that one was live because my cable was out for most of it!

Reply

akuma_river May 6 2010, 09:49:12 UTC
I was watching it online but they had a box dedicated to it on the front page and I was watching the House debate Puerto Rico and decided to switch it. I got into it about middle way and then hours later (or next day?) they re-ran it.

Reply

so_bambiesque May 6 2010, 09:41:32 UTC
Thanks! After the US election I pretty much made up my mind that no election could ever be as fun or exciting, as well as rage-inducing. It's sort of nice to know I was almost wrong.

Reply

(The comment has been removed)

so_bambiesque May 6 2010, 09:46:26 UTC
My Mum got an email from her cousin who lives just outside Sydney which mostly consisted of, "Well we've seen a lot of pictures of David Cameron, so I guess he's going to win? What party is he?" It's nice to think that maybe there's been more and she's just missed it completely lol

Reply

akuma_river May 6 2010, 09:37:51 UTC
C-SPAN has debate coverage. They got it ARCHIVED!

The Daily Show had a big thing about it. I've heard about it on the morning news shows, Nightline and World News. Hell I think my local news station had a deal about it. Read about it in CNN, HuffPo, LA Times, my local news (I think)...

There was more coverage on the debates but then the Gulf Oil Spill happened and I switched my focus. Sorry, but I live in the Gulf (Texas/safe side) terrified out here. Oh and the Fail Bomb happened. So it got brushed a bit aside.

The thing is that we just have so many shitty things going on that the election being drowned out. There was more coverage a few weeks ago, I think. But I was in the midst of finals prep and wasn't really paying attention to much news places but ontd_p and that wasn't much either.

Reply

arathesane May 6 2010, 09:44:13 UTC
Yeah, the oil spill(which I have been following closely too as I live in FL and love the Gulf of Mexico more than life almost) and the fail bomb definitely took away from the coverage. I imagine there will be a lot of focus on it today, and I saw a lot on it, yesterday as well.

My twitterfeed has been filled with tweets about it for weeks but I follow a lot of people who live in the UK.

Reply

akuma_river May 6 2010, 09:51:47 UTC
I live on the back of Lavaca Bay near Matagorda Bay (we are a special area for the Whooping Crane) and I've kinda made up mind I ain't ever moving.

I've lived on the coast most of my life (before that Plano, Texas) I'm used to the salty air, the hot breezes, and the god awful humidity and mosquitoes.

But the VIEW!

It's just one of those special places.

I'm staying up all day...most of it...to watch it unfold. I like elections....when they have happy endings.

Reply

arathesane May 6 2010, 09:59:28 UTC
I don't live by the Gulf now but I grew up by it. I miss the beach so much. But I am close enough that I can make easy day trips. It's only about an hour away(though it's almost to get to a beach that's similar to what I grew up with) and I go probably more often than I should. But I go a little nuts when I am away from water for too long, and though I love rivers they aren't quite the same.

Yep. The bugs, the humidity, it can be awful. Heh, I actually love the salty air. I miss it, here, sometimes. But even with that insane heat it is also freaking gorgeous and amazing and I really think I will end up living somewhere on the Gulf whenever I retire. Not a touristy place or snowbird area. I like the smaller communities.

Elections are fun! Not sure if this one will have a "happy" ending but it will be an interesting one, no doubt.

Reply

akuma_river May 6 2010, 10:02:04 UTC
Remember how you can smell a storm coming by the rain in the scent?

At least the fate of the world isn't on the election.

I remember the intense anxiety I had on election day. I was just so damn fearful that McCain would get in.

Reply

arathesane May 6 2010, 10:06:00 UTC
Oh, yes, definitely.

True. I will feel back for some of my friends, though, depending on how it turns out.

Oh, I know. I mean, I knew that Obama was going to win, I really had no doubt about that from a logical, emotionless view just from looking at the polling and all the data but emotionally I was a wreck. More the day before than the actual day itself, because that day(and night) was pretty fucking awesome.

Reply

so_bambiesque May 6 2010, 09:44:23 UTC
No that makes sense. Of course the oil spill and the Times Square bomb would take precedence. I think I'm almost surprised that the election had as much coverage as there seems to have been in the first place.

The scary thing is, I'm trying desperately, and I can't think of anything else that made the news in the UK the first week in November in 2008. Obviously there must have been something but... Nope. Not coming to me at all.

Reply

akuma_river May 6 2010, 09:53:26 UTC
Well to be fair the fate of the world depended on our election.

McCain wanted to go to war with Iran, remember?

Obama was more peacey (at least compared to McCain) and wanted to pull out of Iraq and Afghanistan (he's STILL going through with it eventhough there is bound to be some clusterfuckery).

So everyone was watching.

Reply


Leave a comment

Up