Obama slithered out of the debate without answering the Libya question on security and Candy Crowley who looks like the love child of Dudley Moore and Fred Gwynn helped him.
When I was in broadcasting there was an pretty solid rule about "the window." If you weren't picked up nationally by about the age of 28-30 (tops) you were relegated to local reporting (which many people prefer anyway...more stable, hometown etc,). However, even the local window of working in front of the camera wouldn't be long enough (as a general rule) from which you might retire. Of course you can retire from the business behind the camera, and many local reporters move "up" to news director, production manager, etc.....if that makes sense.
The only places that seem to be the exception to this rule, are small communities who grow comfortable seeing the same face everyday and where competition (fierce in bigger markets) isn't really an issue.
For instance, I received my first reporting gig in North Dakota. I finished my undergraduate degree there and it transitioned into a reporting job. While the caliber of people in that great state is outstanding imo, you can look at the smaller town news agencies, like the one in which I started, more specifically at the reporters/anchors and understand they do not follow the "window." Most times it's because they can't get quality "pretty" people to take the positions. As a general rule, these over 30-somethings couldn't get hired cold in another place no matter their experience. So they're kinda stuck in that particular region. (Which again, may be exactly where they are happy to be.)
All that to say, when you see a woman that looks like Candy...you can bet your bottom dollar she's been in the business a LONG time. And by the nature of the beast, has many many years of looking at things from the liberal perspective. Why? Because no news agency, not even FOX news, will make a habit of hiring ugly old conservative FEMALES.
If Barbara Walters tried to start her career now, if magically ALL of her skills were in place, all her experience transformed and inherent, no go. Too old. Same with Candy.
It sounds fairly shallow, but if people only wanted the Who, what, why, where, when, and how, they could get it from the radio, from a single news agency. But Americans, I'd argue people in general, want another kind of connection as well.
Wow...didn't mean to write a book....just some thoughts....lol