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Two differences in the Dana Bash interviews

Discussion in 'Too Hot for Swamp Gas' started by GatorFanCF, Aug 30, 2024.

  1. GatorFanCF

    GatorFanCF Premium Member

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    I watched on YouTube both Dana Bash interviewing VP candidate JD Vance and her interview of POTUS and VP candidates Harris and Walz, respectively. Feel free to watch for yourself. I wrote down two metrics:
    # of times interrupting the candidate and
    # of times challenging the candidate.

    Here are the results:

    Bash interrupted JD Vance 15 times and challenged him 13 times. Starting with her 1st question - my paraphrases for her comments/questions/challenges:
    ...with the switch from Biden to Harris your campaign is struggling a bit...
    Says who?
    No evidence KH threw JB under the bus (to obtain the nomination)- in response
    you're saying Tim Walz doesn't have affection for his wife?
    The Dems have done both (policies and name calling) vs. Vance's assertion of name only
    isn't it untoward to criticize someone who serves?
    they corrected that...(Walz's claim to serve in a combat zone)
    let me stop you right there
    you're comfortable with the (abortion) law in Texas?
    you called out Kamala Harriss...
    You think she's anti child?
    ...that's a whole nother conversation.
    I'm interviewing you, not KH
    right now the POTUS does not have a say (in regards to Fed Reserve, interest rates)
    that would be a huge change
    w/ all due respect, you changed your position...
    I can't believe I'm asking this but do you believe KH is black?

    Bash interrupted Kamala Harris 2 times and challenged her 7 times.

    ...so, what would you do on day one (of your presidency)?
    why haven't you done....already?
    you maintain Bidenomics is a success?
    (re: Fracking) ...it changed during that campaign? (your position)

    And, two wonderful softballs, one each to KH and TW:
    Bash: "...your son is so proud of you..."
    Bash: "...viral photo of your niece watching you" what does it mean to you?
    No such softballs to Vance such as "What's the best thing about being a Dad?"

    You're welcome to watch and validate for yourself:
    https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=kamala+cnn+interview


    If nothing else, interrupting one person 7X more than the other communicates a lack of respect for one candidate over the other. Even unconsciously, someone watching is getting the message of "Hey, it's okay to disrespect this guy"
    Challenging Vance 2X more than Harris again shows bias. I'm glad CNN had the same person interview both. FTR, Vance's interview (link above) was about 26 minutes continuously; whereas, Harris' interview was in 3 parts of roughly 8-10 minutes each; so, the time involved is comparable.

    EDIT: last comment - note the attire for Bash. With Vance it's a power red dress: projecting strength. With Harris/Walz it's a blue dress, affiliated more with friendship and tranquility.
     
    Last edited: Aug 30, 2024
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  2. g8trjax

    g8trjax GC Hall of Fame

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    :emoji_grinning:
     
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  3. GatorFanCF

    GatorFanCF Premium Member

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    That's why I went with metrics that are measurable. Because, when you think about the significance of metrics it's important to understand that metrics mean something that can be measured. And, in the next four years of my posting here on THFSG I want the other posters to know that I take metrics seriously and my posts with be focused on bringing metrics to my fellow Gators. (add here odd laughter).
     
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  4. G8trGr8t

    G8trGr8t Premium Member

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    does it have anything to do with blatant falsehoods being claimed. generally the less honest you are, the more times you are going to be challenged
     
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  5. GatorFanCF

    GatorFanCF Premium Member

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    Fair question. I am biased towards Vance so I won’t respond directly. You’re welcome to watch for yourself

    Note: if one defines “blatant falsehoods” as “whatever the Left does not like” the answer is undeniably YES! Beware of one ideology controlling government and our news- that’s a huge challenge to democracy.
     
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  6. gator_jo

    gator_jo GC Hall of Fame

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    That sounds pretty unfair. The media is so bad and unfair. You are victims.

    Also, which media sources do you watch and believe? The ones who knowingly spread lies about an election, lies which they KNEW were untrue, requiringthemtopay a $1 billion settlement?

    You enable that attack on the truth but you want to find some sympathy here for your sad, sad victimhood?

    Not gonna happen. You're gonna have to look in the dictionary between syphilis and sh!t.
     
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  7. GatorFanCF

    GatorFanCF Premium Member

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    Mr Deflection. No response to the OP whatsoever- because there’s likely one reason why and that blows your mind.
     
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  8. gator_jo

    gator_jo GC Hall of Fame

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    Correct, no response whatsoever. None. Because I didn't read it, or watch it, or whatever you may have desired. And I won't.

    Why? Because, and I don't mean to sound uncivil, but just for the sake of open discourse : I don't care what you say, or about your opinion, or whether you feel mistreated, or frankly all that much whether you ARE mistreated (beyond certain bounds.)

    Why? Because you emphatically support a criminal and a traitor who himself cares about none of those things, but unlike me has had immense amounts of power to inflict harm beyond a contentious message board post.

    Specifically : You support a traitor who enacted a criminal conspiracy to overturn an election through illegal means. You support a person who tried to illegally disenfranchise 10s of millions of people. A person who intentionally and repeatedly, ad nauseum, attacked our democracy and by extension our country. Re-read that until it sinks in, because it is true.

    So you want someone to pay attention to YOUR concerns after THAT? Not gonna happen. At least not with me. You want other people's tears about alleged media unfairness......but you will cast a vote for a person who has and does attack our democracy and country?

    All i got for you is the world's smallest violin and it's playing you a mournful song. Hope you can hear it.
     
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  9. OklahomaGator

    OklahomaGator Jedi Administrator Moderator VIP Member

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    So why are you on this message board?
     
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  10. gator_jo

    gator_jo GC Hall of Fame

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    Numerous reasons. Which don't include having sympathy for the feelings of anyone who wholeheartedly supports a person who repeatedly, intentionally, and criminally attacks our democracy and our country.
     
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  11. Emmitto

    Emmitto VIP Member

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    I mean, don’t go Full George Jefferson railing on us honkies, seems she’s the still the less disgusting.

    Or did she? Didn’t watch, just like I didn’t watch DJT on TwitterXButworse.
     
  12. gatorchamps0607

    gatorchamps0607 Always Rasta VIP Member

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    They own objective reality. Get over it. Assimilate.

    This is why I don't bother having honest conversations with any of these liberals. Like I said in numerous threads, they are simply the most unpleasant and unhappy people acting morally and intellectually superior to everyone. Oh and they claim to be inclusive as well.. go figure.
     
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  13. GatorFanCF

    GatorFanCF Premium Member

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    He doesn’t care six paragraphs worth. ;) I suppose if he cared it would be twelve
     
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  14. GatorJMDZ

    GatorJMDZ gatorjack VIP Member

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    The incredibly self-evident truths that just seem to slip by some people..the same people who wonder why they aren't taken seriously.
     
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  15. GatorJMDZ

    GatorJMDZ gatorjack VIP Member

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    I'm certain a lot of people you interact with act as though they are intellectually and morally superior to you, but not to everyone.
     
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  16. GatorJMDZ

    GatorJMDZ gatorjack VIP Member

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    You don't have to consider everyone's opinion worthy of consideration in order to participate on a message board. Why else have a block feature?
     
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  17. GatorFanCF

    GatorFanCF Premium Member

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    Posts 14 and 15 are fine examples of "attack, belittle and minimize the messenger" - without offering anything of value to the OP.

    Same journalist. Same network.
    One candidate is interrupted 7X more than the other and challenged 2X more than the other.
    One side is given two "feel good" questions about their families - the other, nada.
    CNN can do better...a lot better.
     
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  18. GatorRade

    GatorRade Rad Scientist

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    I appreciate your effort here, CF. Bias is extremely prevalent, and no one should just dismiss your hypothesis outright, especially as you’ve actually tried to quantify rather than assume it.

    Of course media bias is also notoriously difficult to assess because it doesn’t usually offer controlled comparisons. To your credit, you were able to control one variable: host identity. Unfortunately there are other large ones out there. The biggest is probably the one that @G8trGr8t noted, which is that these different interviewees are going to behave differently. If Bash ended the interview after Kamala threw a glass of water on her, we would record the metric of times interview ended as: Vance 0, Kamala 1. But this likely wouldn’t indicate bias against Kamala, as Kamala acted in a very different way.

    Another important variable I see here is interview duration. It seems Vance’s interview is almost 23 min and Kamala/Walz’ is less than 17. So, I’d expect all interactions to occur 35% more frequently with Vance. And Kamala is sharing her time with Walz, so if they split their time 50:50, it would actually be 8.5 min for Kamala vs Vance’s 24. Controlling for interview duration using these figures, we get these numbers:

    Vance:
    Interruptions / min: 0.65
    Challenges / min: 0.57​

    Kamala:
    Interruptions / min: 0.24
    Challenges / min: 0.83
    And then we have all kinds of smaller variables, like that Vance is a man, Bash might have had less sleep or a fight with her son, etc. (There’s a great book, Noise, which demonstrates how much these seemingly small variables can impact our judgements).

    And of course, our sample size is also pretty small. If we had 10 hrs of interviews with each, all four of these numbers likely get revised quite a bit.

    In sum, CF, I hope you don’t think that I’m dismissing your hypothesis without consideration. I really am open to the existence of bias in our media, and your evidence of bias is among the best that a TH poster has brought forth. Unfortunately, this problem is just damn hard, so even the best evidence isn’t definitive. Plus, as you astutely acknowledge, you brought your own viewpoint to the study, and another examiner would likely see the data differently. E.g. while you saw Bash’s dress choices as “strength” vs “tranquility”, I wondered whether we were simply seeing “Republican” vs “Democrat” colors.
     
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  19. rivergator

    rivergator Too Hot Mod Moderator VIP Member

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    You do seem to consider every question she asked Vance to be a challenge, but not every question she asked Harris. Are these not challenges?

    During the Biden-Harris administration, there were record numbers of illegal border crossings. Why did the Biden-Harris administration wait three and a half years to implement sweeping asylum restrictions?

    You raised your hand when asked whether or not the border should be decriminalized. Do you still believe that?

    You insisted that President Biden is extraordinarily strong. Given where we are now, do you have any regrets about what you told the American people?

    Or Walz:

    You said that you carried weapons in war, but you have never deployed actually in a war zone. A campaign official said that you misspoke. Did you?

    And the — the idea that you said that you were in war, did you misspeak, as the campaign has said?
     
  20. kygator

    kygator GC Hall of Fame

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    He said Harris was challenged 7 times and gave 4 examples. You gave another 3.