A surprisingly positive piece from The Atlantic, in which staff editor Chris Good comments on the "Real American Stories with Sarah Palin" special which aired on Fox News Thursday night:
This show, and its format, is a perfect fit for Palin.Good says there's a bigger market for this style of show, because he believes that people react positively to uplifting stories about the American Dream, while they are tired of the seemingly never-ending policy debates. But they never tire of stories which "reinforce their conceptions of opportunity and sacrifice and overcoming adversity that go along with their emotional definitions of what America should be."
[...]
Palin woos voters because she purveys a certain sensibility of what it means to have common sense, of what values should motivate and guide the country.
Palin's book wasn't about politics or policy, it was about her own personal story, and that's what people want. At the end of the day, a lot of the fascination surrounding Palin boils down to her own personal dynamism and charm, her down-to-earth qualities that resonate with a segment of conservative voters who share those values.
In that regard, Palin has an opportunity to bring a set of marginal voters, people not always connected to the political process, into her ranks of supporters. We saw that in the buzz surrounding her campaign appearances in '08.
Good makes an important point. Policy wonks and political junkies tend to forget that they are in the minority. Most Americans couldn't care less about political issues until those policy matters impact their own families, their households and their wallets. But stories of ordinary Americans who make extraordinary achievements resonate with everyday Janes and Joes. Most people find such stories both compelling and inspirational.
And the author is correct that with such shows as "Real American Stories," Gov. Palin can broaden her appeal to a wider number of voters. But her involvement with this series of specials serves, we believe, a purpose even more basic than that. The media has been of no small help in aiding its Leftist masters to demonize Sarah Palin day in and day out for eighteen straight months. While polls tell us that most Americans see through the media lies, there are still a number of people who will see the woman portrayed on a media outlet in a positive light for the first time when they first sit down to view an episode in this series.
Fox News will air a replay of "Real American Stories" tonight at 9:00 p.m. Texas Time.
- JP
