How Would the Media Treat Palin if She Was a Democrat?

Here's an interesting thought on media behavior from John Carlson, writing for Crosscut Seattle: Imagine for a moment that Gov. Sarah Palin was a liberal, pro-choice Democrat but that everything else about her life and career was the same. If she was Sen. Barack Obama's nominee for vice president, what would her media coverage be like?

Here's sn example from Carlson:

Fresh from her jaunty, popular appearance on Saturday Night Live, the mom from the American Outback, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, continues to inject new life into the country's mainstream as Sen. Barack Obama's vice presidential running mate.

"When I said I wanted a reformer, I meant it," said Obama, who threw caution to the wind with his selection of Palin. The Obama campaign was impressed with the former PTA mom who took on Big Oil and dethroned the old boys' club that ran Alaska politics for more than a generation. "As The New York Times and Washington Post have frequently pointed out, Gov. Palin is the only candidate on either ticket with executive experience," Obama said. "And more importantly, she has experience fighting the powerful on behalf of the people — and winning."

... From there, Palin took aim at Republican Gov. Frank Murkowski, who had made what critics called a sweetheart deal with the oil companies for a natural gas pipeline to the Lower 48. Palin ran against Murkowski, made the pipeline deal the major issue in the race and defeated him by 30 points, becoming one of eight women governors in the country. Upon taking office, she tore up Murkowski's pipeline deal and negotiated a new one that included competitive bidding.

More recently, Palin raised taxes on oil companies earning record profits and used the money to send rebate checks to Alaskans. Her Republican critics complain that she requested $197 million in earmarks, but many media outlets quickly pointed out that her Republican predecessor requested $350 million in earmarked projects. "Sarah Palin is ending Alaska's earmark addiction," said Missouri's Democratic senator, Claire McCaskill. "And during this economic downturn, while most Governors are struggling with rising deficits, Alaska is running a surplus."

That kind of political courage has reassured foreign-policy heavyweights who were intially concerned about Palin's lack of expertise about all things overseas.

It's an unique twist on the political spin we've been seeing this political campaign.