Clinton Campaign Coverage Was Sexiest

The sexiest campaign coverage was reserved for Hillary Clinton's primary run, according to many political observers. This reporter, himself, has been referred to as "sexiest" innumerable times by readers on these forums, and while I did like the way my hair looked in that one picture from the Philadelplhia event, I think they're just flattering...wait, I'm getting something in my earpiece...how's that?...Sexist? From The New York Times:

Angered by what they consider sexist news coverage of Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton's bid for the Democratic presidential nomination, many women and erstwhile Clinton supporters are proposing boycotts of the cable networks, putting up videos on a "Media Hall of Shame," starting a national conversation about sexism and pushing Mrs. Clinton's rival, Senator Barack Obama, to address the matter.

Most of the media types who commented for the piece acknowledged problems in spots, but defended the overall tenor of their coverage.

The piece goes on to say that Howard Dean, among others, are calling for a "national discussion" of sexism.

I'm all for that, because I have a hard time with this one. I don't think the coverage was that sexist, relatively speaking, but then again, a fair amount of sexism seems to be the norm in this country. Sometimes, it is hard to know whether something is sexist or not. But usually, you know it when you see it.

I remember sitting through a Super Bowl in the recent past, in which each half-million dollar commercial was more sexist than the last, culminating with a flaming horse fart singeing a beauty queen. That was sexist.

Then again, there's the verbal interplay and flirtation that goes on even on these pages.

In between those two poles is where we can have our talk.

The views that best sum up the phenomenon, as it relates to the Clinton campaign, are Katie Couric's:

"Like her or not, one of the great lessons of that campaign is the continued - and accepted - role of sexism in American life, particularly in the media," Ms. Couric said.

And Keith Olbermann's:

Keith Olbermann, the host of "Countdown" on MSNBC, said that while there were "individual, sexist, mistakes," there was no overall sexism.

Any suggestion that MSNBC "was somehow out to 'get' Senator Clinton is false and unfair," Mr. Olbermann wrote in an e-mail message. "We became a whipping boy."

Couric is absolutely right that real sexism is alive and well in America. It is quite clear in the examples given in the Times piece, like Tucker Carlson shielding his junk when he thinks about Hillary, and Chris Matthews' multiple jabs, which earned him a write-up by Media Matters.

By the same token, MSNBC became a Clinton campaign scapegoat after David Shuster suggested that Clinton's daughter, Chelsea, was being exploited by the campaign, and using the unfortunate phrase "pimped out."

Further muddying the waters is the fact that HIllary Clinton was the subject of unreasonable and unfair coverage, early in the campaign, simply because she's Hillary Clinton.

In my view, sexism is a huge problem in this country, but Hillary Clinton has largely transcended it, and has earned the right to be trashed just because people don't like/feel threatened by/are jealous of Hillary Rodham Clinton, Senator from New York.

This is important because, by focusing energy on problems where there really aren't many, you weaken your ability to identify, and deal with, really serious problems.

As part of our discussion, I would like to hear your experiences with sexism, your thoughts on it, and what you think it is.