Keep that clapping down when Barack Obama enters the room!
Fresh off his visit to three European capitals, where cheering crowds greeted his every move, Sen. Barack Obama spoke on Sunday to journalists attending Unity '08 in his hometown of Chicago.
The conference brought together members of the National Assn. of Black Journalists, the Asian American Journalists Assn., the National Assn. of Hispanic Journalists and the Native American Journalists Assn., and Obama's remarks were broadcast live on CNN.
Concern that an enthusiastic reaction to Obama’s nationally televised remarks might be viewed as unprofessional led conference organizers to send out an e-mail to 6,800 attendees, urging restraint:
“Every effort should be made to maintain professional decorum during the event, especially since it will be broadcast to millions of people who will be watching an audience of journalists listening to comments of a political candidate for the U.S. presidency.”
They were looking to avoid a repeat of what happened in 2004, when some attendees gave that year's Democratic presidential candidate, Sen. John F. Kerry, a standing ovation, while President Bush was the recipient of boos.
But despite the official entreaty, the convention hall erupted in loud applause when the presumptive Democratic nominee walked in, and many in the audience left their seats to take pictures of the candidate when he finished.
"Our readers expect a certain distance, and applauding closes the gap,” said Les Payne, a columnist for Newsday. “That said, there are not just journalists here. There are family members and people in other professions.”
Sen. John McCain, the Republican nominee-in-waiting, was also invited to speak at the conference, but his campaign declined, citing scheduling conflicts. McCain spent the day at his home in Sedona, Ariz., and leaves Monday morning for events in California.
McCain’s decision not to attend prompted one attendee to accuse the Arizona senator of “blowing off” an invitation to address thousands of journalists while complaining that “the media isn’t giving him enough love.”
-- John Mitchell
Photo credit: Associated Press
Andrew Malcolm's immigrant parents repeatedly stressed the importance of active participation in a democracy. Early lessons included learning the alphabetical list of states by watching televised roll calls of national political conventions. That childhood exposure led to a lifelong fascination with politics, including 40-plus years of covering them and a brief stint practicing them as press secretary to Laura Bush in 1999-2000. A veteran foreign and national correspondent, Malcolm served on the Times Editorial Board and was a Pulitzer finalist in 2004. He is the author of 10 nonfiction books and father of four.
Johanna Neuman is a veteran Washington correspondent for both The Los Angeles Times and USA Today, having covered presidents and politics as far back as Ronald Reagan. A former president of the White House Correspondents Assn., she authored a book on media and foreign policy, “Lights, Camera, Wars.” Most recently she was co-author of the 
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Hussein Obama won't attend a town hall debate with John McCain, why should McCain attend this side show ? This is all Obama wants to do, show up with big crouds, thinking he's already the president, and hope everyone will adore him. This man would never do anything good for this country. Look at his failed voting while briefly in the senate. His ego is so damn big now, his laziness will never end. I am tired of hearing him and tired of seeing him. Some voters will not be dragged into his looney group.
Posted by: Question | July 27, 2008 at 03:26 PM
HEY,
A whole lotta people are burnt out on this freak Barack Obama!!
Posted by: S.A. | July 27, 2008 at 03:38 PM
Obama truly believes he is God's gift to humanity... and that is what is dangerous about this man. His wilfull arrogance and sense of entitlement.
Sure, McCain told him he should go to Irag so he will learn first hand what he's talking about in terms of foreign policy. But he did not have to turn it into a marketing extravaganza. He could have had "some" press coverage, but not the way his whole trip was staged.
He seems to think he's running for President of the World, and that his charisma will overcome all that ails the US and the World.
Posted by: BJ | July 27, 2008 at 08:42 PM
It is very sad that the truth about American Bigotry is being exposed all over the world. People who were under the mistaken impression that race relations in the U.S. are good and that All men were created equal, are seeing and hearing the truth at last. I feel so sorry for those of you who are facing their worst nightmare. AN AFRICAN AMERICAN PRESIDENT. It makes me want to laugh out loud. But don't worry JIM CROW IS ALIVE AND WELL AND LIVING IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.
Posted by: Jay | July 28, 2008 at 04:24 PM