Unpopular Question
by Paul Giacobbe
The NBC10 news staff did not escape the national controversy over the propriety of questioning vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin’s family obligations. Shortly after she was announced as the Republican choice, Governor Carcieri was asked about her candidacy while he was at the Republican National Convention.
The question which raised the ire of several viewers was asked during a live interview with Carcieri on the 5:30 p.m. news show. It was the last question, having been preceded by several questions which gave Carcieri the opportunity to praise the selection of Governor Palin.
“If you were hiring her for a position when you ran Cookson, wouldn’t you wonder whether (she) was up to the job, whether (she) could balance family and responsibilities?” the reporter asked.
Viewer Maureen Walsh, who said she worked in human resources, said she “takes great exception” to the question. As a human resources person, she said, those kind of questions can’t be asked of prospective employees and for the reporter to ask was “idiotic and insulting.”
The reporter says he believes the question was fair, “considering the enormous responsibilities of the vice-presidency, not to mention the presidency.” While the governor responded that he would never ask a prospective employee such a question, the reporter said, “wouldn’t he wonder?,” especially in the larger context of the vice-presidency.
Reporters ask questions. The best reporters frequently ask the unpopular questions. Imagine if the governor had responded, ‘You know, I don’t know how she’s going to be able to handle all that responsibility.’
The issue is not whether family obligations should be a factor in electing a presidential ticket, but whether there’s
anythingin a candidate’s life likely to distract a president, man or woman, from his or her responsibilities.
The governor himself, early in the same interview, in response to a question about Governor Palin’s qualifications, said “There’s nothing wrong with asking questions. Just report on it and move on.” That’s what this reporter did.
The suggestion that certain questions are out of bounds ignores an essential element of news reporting. This not someone being hired as a data processor; this is someone who will be the vice-president. Voters can’t generally ask questions of candidates. The ballot decision rests on public statements, debates and questions, usually from reporters.
In addition, Governor Palin’s past statements and actions have, according to some, made the tough questions about her family situation more appropriate.
Debra Haffner, a Unitarian minister and sex educator from Westport, Connecticut, is quoted in the Los Angeles Times as saying she thinks Palin has invited such scrutiny. “When you keep proudly saying ‘I’m a hockey mom of five’ . . . you open your own parenting practice up to consideration.”
In 2004, according to the same LA Times article, Palin herself told a newspaper she decided not to run for the U.S. Senate because her son opposed it.
“How could I be the team mom if I was a U.S. senator?” she asked.
Some suggest that such questions would not be asked of a man. In 2007, when John Edwards continued to pursue the Democratic presidential nomination, questions arose about whether a man with three children, including two still in school, and who was confronting the illness of a spouse, could meet the demands of the presidency.
Additionally, if a male candidate had five young children, including a 17 year old pregnant daughter and a special needs infant, and he was not asked if that would be a distraction, then shame on all those who failed to ask the question.
In the world of partisan politics, reporters have a difficult job. If history has taught us anything, it’s that the worst questions are the ones not asked.
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NBC10 provides the space for this blog, but the opinions are mine alone. – Paul Giacobbe
