Extra Credit Post

In reading the chapter discussing ipolitics, I couldn't help but think back to the 2008 election race. Due to our media-based society, the coverage this thing got was unbelievable. In the months leading up to the election, you almost couldn't escape hearing the latest about Obama, Mccain or Palin. Saturday Night Live boosted the media coverage even more with the skits they aired, poking fun at everyone involved in the election. Obama appeared on adolescent TV shows, Mccain was seen at athletic events, and Sarah Palin was all over for "being a milf" and being stupid, which landed her some pretty sweet youtube clips. Now, in 2011, I couldn't tell you what's going on politically. 3 years ago it was inescapable, now you have to go out of your way to get information. To me this demonstrates that we don't necessarily pick the most qualified candidate, we pick the one we like the most. It becomes sort of a popularity contest, in that people lose interest once the winner is announced. I believe that is what happened in the 2008 election, and the same cycle will repeat next year.