A virtual convention that turned into an actual success
In this image from video, former first lady Michelle Obama speaks during the first night of the Democratic National Convention on Monday, Aug. 17, 2020. (Democratic National Convention via AP)
Well, that was … different.
And this time, different was good, different was effective. This time, different worked.
Monday night’s opening of the Democratic National Convention felt like a TV show. Then again, let’s be honest, the national conventions have always been made-for-TV events.
But this time around, with the coronavirus turning the convention into a mostly-virtual event full of taped speeches and highly produced videos, it felt like a variety show. Smoothly hosted by actress Eva Longoria, the tightly-edited, fast-paced show had celebrities, music videos and a series of powerful speeches.
Then the last 15 minutes turned into a full-fledged political fight because of a devastating speech delivered by former first lady Michelle Obama.
“I’ve never heard a first lady speak about a sitting president of the United States the way Michelle Obama did,” CNN’s Wolf Blitzer said moments after the conclusion of the first night of the DNC.
Let’s start, however, with the night as a whole. Thanks to obvious meticulous planning, the Democrats took a virtual convention and turned into an actual success by leaning into the advantages of a convention not confined to a convention hall.
There were videos featuring Joe Biden, including one with Bruce Springsteen’s “The Rising” playing under it. There were other music videos, featuring the likes of Maggie Rogers and Leon Bridges. There were speeches of popular politicians, such as New York City Mayor Andrew Cuomo and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders. But there also were moments of so-called “regular people” who told their stories of why Biden is the future. That included a heartbreaking testimonial from a woman whose father voted for Trump and died of the coronavirus, in part, she said, because he listened to Trump downplaying the virus.
That was the most impactful moment of the night.
Until Michelle Obama spoke in a taped speech.
CNN’s Van Jones called it an “extraordinary speech,” adding, “She was not just trying to put the president down, she was picking the country up.”
But make no mistake, she put down President Donald Trump.
“Donald Trump is the wrong president for our country,” she said. “He has had more than enough time to prove that he can do the job, but he is clearly in over his head. He cannot meet this moment. He simply cannot be who we need him to be for us. It is what it is."
It is what it is — an obvious reference to Trump’s answer to a question about the coronavirus.
ABC’s Byron Pitts called it the third-most important speech of the week, presumably behind Joe Biden and Kamala Harris. He called Michelle Obama “the cool aunt, everybody’s favorite aunt.”
But part of her speech was more like that of a mother, imploring that the office of the president be reserved for someone with empathy — something she insists Trump lacks and Biden has. In this moment, the speech felt much more intimate and, therefore, much more effective than had it been delivered in a huge convention hall with thousands of people. Her anger, her grace, her passion and compassion and every other emotion was especially felt because of the format.
Fox News’ Dana Perino said, “(It’s) very difficult to connect with an audience without an actual audience there with you, but she has the ability to connect with people through the screen. You got the sense when you talk about authenticity, she has it in spades. She has that voice, she has clarity and she knows what she was out there wanting to do.”
Her colleague, Chris Wallace, said, “She really flayed, sliced and diced Donald Trump talking about the chaos and confusion and lack of empathy especially coming from this president and this White House. … This was a very effective speech.”
This is an unusual convention that could result in disconnect and ambivalence from the audience. However, through one night, the Democrats figured out how to make it work and connect with their audience. Now can they keep it going for three more nights?
What about the networks?
CBS Evening News anchor and managing editor Norah O’Donnell, left, with "60 MINUTES" correspondent and senior political analyst John Dickerson, CBS News contributor Maria Elena Salinas, and CBS News political analyst Jamal Simmons. (Courtesy: CBS News)
The networks adjusted fairly well to the new format of the convention, which cannot be easy. These are whole new challenges. But the networks, as well as the cable news stations, were up to the challenge, with smart analysis in between the speeches.
Marc Burstein, senior executive producer/ABC News special events, told me, “While they may lack the spectacle of past conventions, given the serious issues of the pandemic, the economy and racial justice, that both parties must address, I expect both of these conventions to be as substantive as any time before.”
That was certainly true Monday.
Rashida Jones, senior vice president at NBC News and MSNBC, told me, “The venues will look like nothing you’ve ever seen on a convention night, but the journalism remains at the center. We have an incredibly deep bench of experts, veteran anchors and reporters to keep our audience informed across NBC, MSNBC and streaming on NBC News NOW. We’ll cover the big speeches each night and offer the audience important context, perspective and analysis through both weeks of convention coverage.”
So far away
There are many noticeable differences between the TV coverage of a typical convention and what we’re seeing this year. One of those is seeing the anchors in studios instead of the convention halls.
“NBC Nightly News” anchor Lester Holt, who is co-anchoring the NBC convention coverage, told Time Magazine’s Philip Elliott one of the main drawbacks of not being there.
“Well, it’s particularly strange for me, because one of the hallmarks at ‘Nightly News’ is that I like to take viewers to the story,” Holt said. “I want to talk to people. I want to bring a personal connection to the story. And, of course, we have lost that ability on a lot of the things we cover. Part of conventions are the conversations in the hallway, it’s the people you run into. You pick up little nuggets along the way. This is going to be very different watching in a studio people who may be giving speeches from their living rooms or their kitchens.”
Biggest slam
The biggest slam of the night — well, aside from Michelle Obama’s speech — was delivered by former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie. Appearing on ABC’s coverage of the convention, Christie was asked about lifelong Republican and former Ohio Gov. John Kasich appearing at the DNC.
“He’s a backstabber and he’s an untruthful guy,” Christie said. “Republicans are going to look at that and go, ‘You can have him. … Give us a break and get him out of our party. You take him for a little while.’ On top of all that, I’ve worked with John a lot. He’s exhausting. Joe Biden is going to be getting calls from John Kasich. He’s going to want to change his phone number.”
Political analyst and Democrat Yvette Simpson followed Christie and said, “I agree with the governor. We don’t want him either.”
It was one of the more entertaining exchanges of the night.
Thoughts that popped into my head watching Monday night’s DNC
- As the Democratic National Convention officially kicked off with an opening message from actress Eva Longoria and a taped message, Fox News showed “Hannity,” and talked about the protests in Portland and other Republican talking points. I get it: Sean Hannity is Fox News’ biggest star, his show draws big cable TV numbers and the typical Fox News viewer would rather watch Hannity than the DNC. But, still, you would think that for at least the opening moments of the opening night, Fox News — for credibility’s sake — would show the DNC. However, it should be pointed out that PBS’s coverage returned to panel discussions after the national anthem and invocation opening. In fact, PBS spent much of their coverage with panel discussions when there weren’t big speeches
- Having said that, let’s keep an eye on what MSNBC does next week with the Republican convention.
- Fox News did cut away from Hannity’s show to listen to George Floyd’s family speak and to honor a moment of silence in his memory.
- One of the advantages of having the White House is going second in the conventions. That might be especially advantageous in 2020 with these unprecedented conventions. Although you would think that pretty much all of the Republicans’ plans have to be in place at this point, they might be able to watch what the Democrats do this week — what works and what doesn’t with a mostly virtual convention — and make a few last-minute adjustments.
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