Friday, September 5, 2008

Lisa Bloom: Palin brought it all on herself

"Once she's brought her children in as selling points, unfortunately the bad comes in with the good," says Lisa Bloom, a Court TV anchor. "She's integrating her mom quality as a key part of her résumé. We didn't do that in the press; she did that."

Bloom says the Republican governor has been less than candid about what "had to be a disturbing family situation," but quickly adds that judging public figures by their children is tricky business. "All of us who are parents kind of cringe, if this makes her a less suitable candidate because the kid screwed up." Source

Question for Lisa Bloom. Many male candidates, including Obama, have emphasized their own fatherhood or discussed it politically. Does this mean the media should invade the privacy of their children for questionable relevance and in hyped up fashion? Does this mean those men should be pressured to step out of the race because they have kids? Should they be accused of being bad fathers if they don't? Does the mere fact that Palin has admitted being a mother (and even highlighted it in some fashion) mean that all sexist questions are fair game?

3 comments:

Boonton said...

Interesting question:

Obama has mentioned his family status but there is a sharp contrast in how he has used his family and how Palin has used hers (as well as her supporters). Obama has NOT used his kids. Yes you briefly saw them on stage and they did one softball interview (even that he later said was a mistake and he wouldn't be doing it again). Basically all we know about Obama's family is the basic facts....he appears to be happily married and has two young daughters.

Palin, on the other hand, has been sold to pro-lifers on both the grounds that she has a lot of kids (relevant to some evengelicals...see the quiverfull movement) and the fact that she knew her last kid has Down's Syndrome but nevertheless choose not to abort.

Anonymous said...

"Does this mean the media should invade the privacy of their children for questionable relevance and in hyped up fashion? Does this mean those men should be pressured to step out of the race because they have kids? Should they be accused of being bad fathers if they don't?" Only if the male candidate is a Republican and if his children could be used against him, even if unjustly so. Democrats, male or female, will always get a pass from their fellow Democrats in the mainstream media.

Anonymous said...

Rush Limbaugh regularly dissed Chelsea Clinton's *looks* during her father's presidency, you know, during that awkward gangly phase where no one looks quite right and everyone feels the most insecure.

Media bias cuts both ways.