October 8, 2008 3:12:34 AM CDT
(Newser) – The press tries to treat politicians’ offspring, particularly younger ones, with kid gloves, writes David Carr of the New York Times—so it’s no wonder there was a furor when Barack Obama let Access Hollywood interview his 10- and 7-year-old daughters. Many reporters were irked by the beyond-puff piece, and Obama swiftly said he wouldn’t do it again, drawing the curtain back over his family.
“Politicians are allowed to deploy their children as cuddly human jewelry when it suits their needs," Carr writes, "but then tuck them back behind the firewall.” But "this game of peekaboo—fine if you fawn, heck to pay if you don’t—drives reporters nuts, a sense that campaigns and presidents are having it both ways."
Source New York Times
Aug 28, 08 11:33 AM CDT Malia and Sasha Obama had hoped that a surprise visit Monday night after their mom’s convention speech was from someone with a little more rock-star quality than their dad, CNN reports. “Is it the Jonas Brothers?” 10-year-old Malia asked when Michelle Obama leaned down on stage to tell the girls “I’ve got a surprise for you.” More »
Aug 26, 08 3:14 AM CDT Michelle Obama's rousing speech at the Democratic National Convention kept things down to earth where her husband has the tendency to soar skyward, Roger Simon writes in Politico. She introduced herself as a sister, wife and mother, underscoring the campaign's effort to show the Obamas as an ordinary American family. More »
Jul 24, 08 11:39 AM CDT It can be hard enough to keep kids grounded, but Barack and Michelle Obama's task might be complicated by his quest to be the most powerful leader in the world. Not so, the Obamas tell People, in a look at how they keep it real on the campaign trail. The Democratic candidate says 10-year-old Malia and 7-year-old Sasha are normal kids who make a buck a week for allowance, and fear moving to DC and making new friends should dad get the job. More »
Jul 13, 08 12:04 PM CDT Caught up in a Fourth of July celebration, Barack Obama agreed to let his daughters be interviewed on "Access Hollywood," a turnaround from his position on his family's privacy and a big slip-up, writes Maureen Dowd in the New York Times. But Obama compounded the error by expressing morning-after regret so vehemently that it just looked like the latest in a series of flip-flops. More »
Jul 9, 08 10:00 AM CDT Barack Obama took the unusual step of sitting down with Access Hollywood, but the interview took a decidedly precocious tone when daughters Malia and Sasha joined in, dishing on mommy and daddy holding hands and potential White House bedroom decor. The first interview of the Obamas is airing over four evenings, beginning last night, and is expected to draw millions of viewers—at a time when John McCain is struggling to stay in the spotlight. More »
Barack Obama • Obama 2008 • media • Michelle Obama • interview • Access Hollywood • Malia Obama • Sasha Obama
