How the election ate daytime television

Why talk shows like “The View” are showcasing some of the most sophisticated (and mind-numbingly stupid) conversations about the presidential race. By Rebecca Traister Clockwise from upper left, John McCain appears on “The Ellen DeGeneres Show,” “Rachael Ray” and “The View.” Oct. 9, 2008 | Eight minutes before the first and only vice-presidential debate, MSNBC’s “Countdown” host, Keith Olbermann, and Newsweek’s Howard Fineman were talking about “The View.” The opinionated, loud and very male Olbermann was making a point about how low Sarah Palin had sunk in America’s estimation by playing a video clip of the daytime talk show’s resident conservative Elisabeth Hasselbeck. Admitting that Palin’s inability to name a single Supreme Court case besides Roe v. Wade was perhaps worrisome, Hasselbeck conceded, “That was a moment where... [read full story]