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Note to Sen. Watson: Next time prepare!
State Sen. Kirk Watson fizzled and swooned on MSNBC last night when Chris Matthews asked him to name “just one” of Barack Obama’s legislative accomplishments.
After a bit of dead air and some stammering, it became abundantly clear that Watson was not going to be able to answer the question. Ouch! It was mortifying, and if you think I’m exaggerating, see for yourself.
Austin politicians and pundits are bound to be lured into the national media’s red glare as we close in on the all-important Texas primary on March 4. And cable newsies will be all over Austin tomorrow (Thursday) for the Democratic debate on CNN and Univision.
It’s too late to offer my services to Sen. Watson, but here’s my professional advice, based on a couple of decades of watching similar meltdowns, to anyone else who agrees to go on national television and tout a candidate.
Know the topic to be discussed. Watson is an Obama supporter, so he knew that Matthews would be asking him about Obama. It doesn’t take a genius to figure that you ought to know a few positive facts and accomplishments about the candidate you’re touting. Obama 101.
Also, know that satellite interviews, in which the person being questioned is talking to a camera instead of a face, are the hardest to pull off gracefully. The unseen questioner is babbling into your earpiece, and unless you’re sitting in a studio, background noise makes hearing difficult to impossible. Result: you just might look ridiculous.
If you have any doubt about your ability to handle the situation, don’t do it. You can wind up doing more harm than good. Nobody wants to watch a human being imitating a deer in the headlights. Hillary Clinton’s folks have been burning up the Internet with last night’s clip of Watson unable to cough up a single Obama accomplishment.
I’m sure Watson had a hard time hearing Matthews, who did his trademark badgering a bit longer than usual, and we know that Watson’s appearance had been delayed several times before it actually happened.
Nevertheless, politicians in this day and age must know how to present themselves on television — national or local. Sen. Watson told the American-Statesman today his MSNBC stint felt like a “bad dream.” If only it were …
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By Winchester
February 20, 2008 11:43 AM | Link to this
If it were Rick Green being asked Mike Huckabee's accomplishments, what would he have said?