Choose your words wisely
September 29th 2008 04:16 pm
It took me several days to figure out why I thought Obama performed better than McCain at the presidential debate on Friday night. Before I even listened to what the pundits had to say (I’m addicted to CNN, Fox News, and MSNBC—in that order), I knew Obama had the slight edge and his poll numbers would rise by Monday. The key to Obama’s success was his words and his delivery, which in the past I always found slightly wooden. Unlike McCain, who referred to Obama as “my opponent” and stared at the moderator causing his eyes to be downward when the camera was focused straight on him, Obama spoke directly to Sen. McCain and directly into the camera. These two choices—the much more personal use of “you” instead of a generic noun and facing the audience (i.e. the millions of Americans watching the debates on TV)—gave Obama’s words more depth as well as a harder punch when necessary. He remained personable and friendly even as he pointed out McCain’s flaws, while the older senator teetered between condescending and stubborn. (Did we really need a recap of his opinion about pork-barrel spending?)
Anyway, in my opinion, Obama had his best debate ever. Maybe he should give Hillary a call and thank her for teaching him the ropes. As for Sen. McCain, he needs to work on looking into the camera and addressing his opponent—not the moderator.
AWW — XoXo
