Images of Iraq carnage echo US security theme
On a day when the Democratic National Convention's theme was "a stronger, more secure America," John Kerry's dramatic arrival -- a slow boat ride into Boston surrounded by his Vietnam crewmates -- made for good television visuals. And the campaign energetically touted the candidate's endorsements from a dozen retired generals and admirals.
But the images that really placed national security at the forefront of the nation's consciousness yesterday were the grisly pictures of the carnage from Iraq, primarily the horrific car bombing that killed scores of people.
Although its anchors were stationed at the FleetCenter, both the CBS and NBC nightly newcasts yesterday opened with reports from Iraq complete with footage of burning vehicles and mangled bodies. "This is the most violent day in Iraq in a month," said CBS anchor Dan Rather. ABC summed up the events with one word filling the screen: "Massacre."
Interviewing Senator Joseph Biden on MSNBC yesterday afternoon, NBC anchor Tom Brokaw eschewed the subject of convention politics to dwell on the thornier foreign policy questions that Kerry might have to answer as president. "It's been another murderous day in Iraq," Brokaw said somberly. "Is there the possibility that more American troops have to be committed to Iraq?"
A few hours later, during his eagerly anticipated prime-time speech, vice presidential hopeful John Edwards quickly tried to establish Kerry's national security credentials in a dangerous and uncertain world by recounting his service in Vietnam and calling his running mate decisive and strong.
"Is this not what we need in a commander in chief?" Edwards asked the audience inside the FleetCenter and those watching around the country.
The immediate pundit post-mortems on Edwards's speech were positive, if not effusive.
"Smoothly delivered" and "very optimistic" was the verdict from ABC's political director Mark Halperin.
CNN's political correspondent Candy Crowley compared the performance to that of another of last night's speakers. "Al Sharpton seemed to connect in a passionate way," she said. "John Edwards didn't seem to get to the depth of that."
Sharpton's passionate and crowd-pleasing speech, which went 14 minutes longer than scheduled, seemed to surprise anchors and commentators with its ferocity and willingness to stray from the party's upbeat, optimistic message. "This man was one of the first unscripted moments of the convention," declared CNN's Wolf Blitzer. Added MSNBC's Chris Matthews, with at least a hint of admiration: "Al Sharpton gave a hell of an angry speech."
In the hours leading to last night's speeches, the media world could not stop buzzing about Barack Obama, a Senate candidate from Illinois, who wowed the pundits with a virtuoso keynote speech Tuesday night and who seemed to have the term "rising star" formally appended to his name.
The National Journal's Hotline, a daily digest of political news, called it "one of those rare occasions where a speaker lived up to the hype" and made comparisons to Mario Cuomo's memorable 1984 convention speech.
On the front page of USA Today, it was Obama's picture that dwarfed those of Senator Edward M. Kennedy, Howard Dean, and Teresa Heinz Kerry. Brokaw wondered out loud about "who will be remembered most," after the convention recedes into history, "John Kerry or Obama?"
"The Obama buzz is big today," noted CNN morning anchor Bill Hemmer.
