Sarah Palin’s Alaska debuted on TLC last night and this morning one can read in any number of places how the show is not just about Alaska but is also about Sarah Palin.
(“Her new TLC series isn’t just about the great outdoors–it’s also about her greater career ambitions,” explains Shelley Ross at newsweek.com).
Ross also helpfully locates the “7 Secret Political Messages in [Palin’s] New Reality Show,” while an LA Times blog “decod[es]” the episode to find its “Top 3 Lessons.” One can browse a list of “Top 10 Moments” from the show at washingtonpost.com, or, if time-pressed, opt for people.com’s “Top 3 Moments.”
The show left ABC News wondering, “Could Sarah Palin’s Alaska Lead to Sarah Palin’s White House?” Ditto CNN (“Sarah Palin’s Alaska: Running for president on reality TV?”) CBS News, similarly, asks: “Sarah Palin’s Alaska – a 2012 Campaign Ad?” There is no question at Salon: “Sarah Palin’s Alaska: Hour-long campaign ad.” Adweek, meanwhile, breaks it down:
Liz Cox Barrett is a writer at CJR.Since Sept. 12, TLC has averaged 1.34 million viewers in the [Sarah Palin’s Alaska] slot. Based on projected deliveries and estimated spot costs, Palin could receive as much as $2.25 million in free media exposure per episode, or $18 million for the entire series. In other words, if Palin were to make a run for the White House in 2012, TLC will have gifted the world’s most famous hockey mom with an unprecedented tide of soft-focus campaign support.
