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With all that's going on in this country and the world, even the most cynical among us was probably surprised at the amount of attention the news media paid to President Obama's use of a TelePrompter at his news conference on Tuesday evening.
A TelePrompter is nothing more than a digital note card. It's an astonishingly unremarkable device. Ask yourself this: did President Lincoln deliver the Gettysburg Address with prepared remarks? (Yes.) Does it matter? (No.) Would you have cared if he used a computer screen instead of a piece of paper to read them? (I certainly hope not.)
But our national media is obsessed with the TelePrompter, and it's not just FOX. It's MSNBC, CNN, and even NBC News.
They are obsessing on something that has no meaning, however. As you'll see in this video, use of a TelePrompter doesn't guarantee you a silver tongue -- just ask John McCain.
Most importantly, whether or not you're right about a major policy -- like the Iraq War -- is a matter of judgment. The TelePrompter can't save you. If it could, then John McCain might just be president.
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Update (5:50PM): If you're a video fan, you'll be interested to know that earlier today we released Daily Kos TV beta 5. It's come a long way over the last two months. The new design focuses on making the site easier to navigate and read. Come check it out and let us know what you think!