As if there is a need to better understand why Sarah Palin was treated differently by the media than Joe Biden, Phys.org reports on a scientific study analyzing the different treatment that Sarah Palin received by the media as compared to the treatment of Joe Biden. The “science” behind the report simply involved an analysis of the number of news stories about Palin and Biden. The “study” revealed that coverage of Palin was more likely to include references to her family, physical appearance and social issues, particularly in newspapers and by political blogs, while coverage of Biden dealt more with foreign policy and the economy. Well, the only thing I can say about this study is that the wheel is still turning, but the hamster is DEAD!
From the moment we were introduced at the RNC to Sarah Palin, she was winking,
and flaunting her children.
Joe Biden didn’t make a joke about lipstick, or carry a baby under his arm. Biden hasn’t appeared on stage wearing leopard shoes
and he surely hasn’t been seen flicking his tongue at people.
Joe didn’t appear in a swim suit at the Mr. Scranton pageant, and he hasn’t appeared on any reality shows about big hair.
It is “studies” like this one, and candidates like Palin, that hurt the image of women in politics. It has nothing to do with gender, and everything to do with stupidity. It has nothing to do with competent professional women, and everything to do with manipulative, deceptive, abusive women. Palin should have been treated differently than Joe Biden because he was an experienced, intelligent, educated politician; and she was just an inexperienced, unintelligent, uneducated pit bull. Biden earned our respect. Palin earned our scorn. Biden is a statesman. Palin is a rogue. Joe is married to Jill
who has a Phd. and is a professor of English. Sarah is married to Todd who is a pimp, he doesn’t have a college degree, and the only thing he teaches is how to coerce police and Secret Service personnel.
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July 6, 2012 at 1:49 pm
jk
Palin’s camp made sure that she wasn’t asked about foreign policy, domestic policy (other than the most superficial talking points) or anything else of substance. She knew nothing about any of that stuff.
And Palin misrepresented herself and her family.
So, basically, she was, and continues to be, a big fraud.
July 6, 2012 at 1:58 pm
Sarah Palin has a serpent's heart
Jill Biden is at least ten years older than Sarah and looks a lot better than her too.
July 6, 2012 at 6:08 pm
malialitman
Sarah Palin has a serpent’s heart,
It must be the difference in their intellect!
July 6, 2012 at 9:03 pm
AFM
I think it’s because Jill lives honestly and has no need to lie about anything. While we know Palin wouldn’t know what the truth is if it hits her in the face. Lying does takes it toll.
July 7, 2012 at 11:08 pm
Cracklin' Charlie
JOE Biden looks better than Sarah!
July 8, 2012 at 10:13 am
sachet
FL Michelle is the same age and Sarah Palin, and Palin looks much older than our first lady.
July 6, 2012 at 2:44 pm
CIP
Of course, she was treated differently, Malia. Look at Edwards’ illegitimate daughter and how it ruined his career. Yet a faked pregnancy…oh no, the media can’t go there!
She’ll never be in office again. Of that we can be sure of and thankful for.
July 6, 2012 at 6:04 pm
malialitman
CIP,
I’d like to believe you are right, but people still give her money?!
July 6, 2012 at 6:42 pm
NJfan
Malia, her ‘bots’ give her money but I think her big moneyed Republican supporters have dwindled after her fake vacation/campaign bus tour. After creating all that media frenzy as to whether she’ll run or not she opted out…after filling her coffers with their money.
July 8, 2012 at 9:53 am
sachet
CIP: Don’t call that child illegitimate. That is uncalled for. It is an ancient stigma, that only hurts innocent children who did not ask to come into this world.
She is a child, and is NOT responsible for the actions of her parents.
She is a legitimate human. And that is all that matters in regards to that child.
Her parents on the other hand, are the guilty ones.
July 6, 2012 at 3:28 pm
Amy
I wonder if Sarah Palin knows she is ignorant or is she too ignorant to know she is ignorant?
July 6, 2012 at 6:03 pm
malialitman
Amy,
That is a question I have never found the answer to, but I suspect she doesn’t know because of statements like building dikes, and our North Korean allies.
July 6, 2012 at 9:06 pm
AFM
CIP, they say ignorance is bliss. She is very blissfull.
July 6, 2012 at 3:44 pm
Deni
Comparing $arah Palin to Pit Bulls is insulting…to the Pit Bull breed! All the Pit Bulls I know are nice, family dogs. $arah Palin isn’t nice to her family or anyone else.
July 6, 2012 at 3:47 pm
avahome
My father would tell us children that we were being judged every time we opened our mouth and spoke. I always believe this. I grew up with strong women influencing me and knew that women had to do better and try harder to accomplish things than men. So I learned early not to either act like a Bimbo or demonstrate that I could be one. How sad that we cannot do a thing to stop this trainwreck.
July 6, 2012 at 6:01 pm
malialitman
avahome,
As a lawyer, I learned that it was expected to be underestimated, because many people thought women couldn’t be good in trial. I worked hard not to say anything, but just show my opponent that I was quite effective and it didn’t matter what they said or did, but nothing need to be said when the jury returned a verdict for my clients.
July 6, 2012 at 8:22 pm
avahome
Yes, leading by example… I’ll just bet you took the high road!
July 6, 2012 at 10:14 pm
malialitman
avahome,
I tried. Once an older male attorney hit me during a deposition, and a female lawyer called me a cow! It was good preparation for writing a blog about Sarah Palin.
July 6, 2012 at 4:32 pm
mudkitten
“… the authors found evidence of gender stereotypes, with stories mentioning her family, physical appearance and positions on social issues …”
Maybe they found this difference in coverage because those are the reasons Palin was selected instead of the more substantial issues that Biden was selected for his expertise in.
This study is flawed because it seems to assume that both candidates were equal in their qualifications for the job. Obviously this was not the case. So the media covered Biden as they would any qualified candidate and just talked about fluff with Palin because that’s all she is. Well, fluff and bile, but they avoided all the negative stuff about her because she was a woman.
If they had compared two candidates who were both running on looks and sex appeal and who got more coverage or how it differed, then you would see if sexism played a part. Or, conversely, if they compared two candidates who were both well qualified and looked for differences in coverage. But to ignore the huge contrast in qualifications between Palin and Biden and say that the difference in media coverage was due to gender stereotyping is ridiculous.
July 6, 2012 at 6:36 pm
Beaglemom
I agree with you, Mudkitten. And Joe Biden has proved himself to be an excellent vice president. And his wife, Jill, has also been superb in her role. She and Michelle Obama have certainly raised the bar in how first ladies and wives of vice presidents should assume their respective roles. Imagine the chaos had John McCain been elected!
July 6, 2012 at 7:35 pm
Barbara
Palin’s revolting behavior didn’t just damage the reputations of women in politics it damaged the reputations of women everywhere, in any field. Every word she has spoken she has sexualized herself, or portrayed herself as a victim, or wrapped herself in the cloak of motherhood and apple pie, (in her case, moose chili), and it’s all been lies.
She winked, tongued, lip-licked and pouted for the media then raged and accused them of sexualizing her. She has complained endlessly of unfair treatment of herself and her children when she was the one who used them as stage props. Palin has manipulated the media but I think they are finally tiring of her transparent games.
Tood the Pimp, Bristol the Slag, Willow the Put-upon and Piper the rude First Brat are old news. Sarah needs a new act if she’s going to continue bringing in the bucks.
July 6, 2012 at 10:17 pm
WakeUpAmerica
Jill is gracious and kind, two character traits that went screaming into the night when they saw Sarah.
July 7, 2012 at 1:55 am
MM
The comparison between the Biden’s and the Palin’s is like day and night, actually that is giving the Palin’s too much credit and the Biden’s not enough.
July 7, 2012 at 8:41 am
99ts
Why Sarah’s family ever became the cornerstone of her campaigning is well beyond me. They are the most dysfunctional family ever to appear on the national political scene. I am still unsure that the McCain staffers knew that Bristol was pregnant when they selected Mrs Palin as the VP nominee. The GOP had to eat its words about teenagers out of control when they met the Palin family.
I am still firmly convinced that Sarah was a major asset to the Obama campaign and a major reason that John McCain lost the election.
July 7, 2012 at 7:55 pm
Ginger
@99ts…
You say, “I am still unsure that the McCain staffers knew Bristol was pregnant when they selected Mrs. Palin as the VP nominee.”
Here’s my opinion…
Bristol wasn’t pregnant during the RNC but…if Sarah wanted the nomination, she had to say Bristol was five-months pregnant and parade her around the stage looking like that. Why? Because McCain staffers didn’t want…nor did they have the time…to deal with the fake pregnancy rumors all over the internet. They did this to stop the rumors, and it worked.
Poor Sarah! After faking a pregnancy, she had to do this to Bristol. Remember Levi telling Vanity Fair…”Sarah wanted to adopt the baby and no one would ever know Bristol had ever been pregnant?” Well, he was talking about Trig…not Tripp.
Of course, after the election, to fulfill the gigs offered her, she needed a baby. We all know she couldn’t use Trig..he’s Sarah’s baby. Hence, they acquuired Tripp who Bristol later referred to as her…”Gerber Baby!”
July 7, 2012 at 8:44 am
aj weishar
Conspicuously missing from the study: Geraldine Ferraro.
July 7, 2012 at 1:09 pm
jcinco
the vp debate made me lose respect for gwen ifill. she had no business moderating a debate if she couldn’t control the situation. who has ever allowed one of the participants in a debate to state “I’m not going to answer the questions put to me” and go on to spew repugnant talking points and rhetoric…only to have the moderator not take back the reins? What a disgrace.
July 8, 2012 at 12:59 pm
crow
I have heard others express this concern, too. In all fairness to Ms. Ifill, I watched a video of her response to that in an interview…
She said she wanted to address that remark at the beginning of the debate and if she were a man she would have, but because she was a female too, she felt viewers would interpret it that she was engaging Palin in a “catfight”. I have to agree with her on that. Sarah was still riding high at that time and was already well into her “I’m so victimized by the press and their gotcha questions” and that is exactly what would have happened. And Sarah would have added another instance to her list of persecutions by the “biased, liberal lamestream media”. I would have loved to have seen Sarah put in her place from the beginning too, but I think Ms.Ifill did the correct thing in the long run.
As a side note, Ms.Ifill had broken her foot the day before the debate and it was propped up underneath her table. She didn’t want to take any pain medication for fear of getting loopy so she was in pain throughout the debate. She was the first woman to host a national debate of that significance – a plum career opportunity for a man as well – and she was not going to lose that hard won position because of a broken foot.