Having the occasion to be at home today rather than at work (the result of an unfortunate but hopefully quickly-remedied back injury), for the first time in quite a while, I'm tuned into daytime cable news.
Flipping between CNN and MSNBC (and gliding only momentarily over Fox News Noise just for giggles), it's clear that the media are churning themselves into a hyperventilating frenzy over who will be Barack Obama's running mate.
It's fascinating how the Villagers on cable news are absolutely freaking out. I flip to CNN, where a perky Kyra Phillps leads in to "political expert" Bill Schneider for an update. Schneider blurts out with frustration what has been echoed by pundits across the channels all morning: they keep saying "I don't know" and "it's anybody's guess" and "I wish there was some insider information I could give you, but...." Schneider and other are pressed for any hints, any indication of who He or She will be, and the pundits keep coming up dry.
It's beautiful.
In one fell swoop, by choosing to disclose his vice-presidential pick directly to voters through text messaging rather than revealing his pick through choice leaks to the press, the Obama camp has given us a momentary reprieve from having to watch smirk-faced pundits gloat about "inside scoops" and "my sources tell me." No "scoops" for the Villagers, followed by anti-climactic press conferences to the people as an afterthought. No "special access" to them, no matter how much they clamor. Technology has allowed the Obama camp to keep all, reporter and regular citizen alike, on the edge of their seats.
For today, the talking heads are absolutely powerless and impotent, staring stupidly at the screen, searching for words to make themselves relevant. For once, they finally feel what we have known all along --that they have absolutely nothing to offer outside of what is selectively hand fed to them.
With all this baseless VP speculation, with their special status and access stripped away, the "insiders" are exactly where we are, inside the cone of silence huddled together in unawareness, exuding palpable excitement, and waiting for what will now be truly breaking news for all but a select few in Obama's circle. Welcome, Villagers, to the land of the regular. I know it's unfamiliar territory, but enjoy your stay. I know I certainly will.
