Sarah Palin!!

Sandy Davidson, a Communications Law professor here at Mizzou, mentioned the September 22, 2008 issue of Newsweek with the "What Women Want" cover while discussing the way the media portrays Alaskan Governor and Republican vice-presidential nominee Sarah Palin.  Inside that issue of Newsweek, in their Campaign 2008 section, there is an article titled "From Seneca Falls to...Sarah Palin?" that goes back to 1984 when Democrat Congreswoman Geraldine Ferraro was picked to be Walter Mondale's running mate.  Ferraro was the first woman to be nominated for vice-president and according to the article, in a debate with then-vice-president George H.W. Bush, he asked her if the "Soviets might be tempted to take advantage of you simply because you are a woman."  Now I know that Saturday Night Live skits aren't the best source of information, but they are so funny!  And they often have valid points.  When "Sarah Palin" said "In the next six weeks I invite the media to be vigilant for sexist behavior," "Hillary Clinton" said, "although it is never sexist to question female politician's credentials."  I totally agree with "Hillary."  The media should not set different standards for female politicians.  They should continue to find out as much as possible about any candidate's views on issues that the public cares about and question every politician's credentials, no matter what gender they are.

When Sarah Palin was nominated, I recognized her name but knew nothing about her stances on anything, except for the fact that she must agree with John McCain a lot because he did pick her to be on his ticket.  And now, a little more than a month later, Palin has some pretty interesting sound bytes.  If I could see Russia from my backyard I would mention it as often as possible too, but when asked about foreign policy, the proximity of her state to foreign countries is probably not the best thing to bring up.  I think that even if she was a man, some of her strange answers in interviews and certain parts of her history as mayor and Governor of Alaska would make people wonder if she was ready to be vice-president of the United States.