McCain Accuses Couric of 'Gotcha!' Journalism

John McCain and Sarah Palin sat down for a joint interview with Katie Couric last night, and it was hard to avoid the impression that McCain was chaperoning his running mate “to keep her out of trouble” writes Time TV critic James Poniewozik. McCain accused Couric of “gotcha journalism,” when she confronted Palin with a statement the would-be veep made at a pizza parlor contradicting his stance on Pakistan.

But the obvious point, Poniewozik writes, is that if she spoke more, an individual misstatement would matter less. By restricting access to Palin, McCain has made each interview “an Olympics-like event.” Joe Biden’s gaffes get much less play, Poniewozik says, because “he makes so freaking many of them.” Eventually, they just stop being news. "Maybe the solution for Sarah Palin is: more gaffes!" (More Sarah Palin stories.)