Update: 1:25 pm The McCain campaign issued a statement yesterday regarding the gaffe itself, but did not address the CBS edit. Until now: (via email)

Tommy Christopher: CBS did not air the response to Katie Couric's question about the Anbar Awakening, matching it instead with another of Senator McCain's responses. Was this edit performed at the request of anyone in or connected to the Senator's campaign?

Tucker Bounds: no

CBS News issued the following statement to me, via email:

As all news organizations do with extended interviews, last night's Obama and McCain interviews were edited to fit the available time and to give the viewers a fair expression of the candidates' major differences. The full transcript and video were and still are available at cbsnews.com

.

Well, that was worth the wait. My questions to them were whether the McCain campaign had requested the cut, and would they be running a correction on the evening news?

This non-explanation holds no water. You don't cut the gaffe answer to one question, and replace it with the answer to a completely different question. One could hardly be blamed for thinking CBS was trying to pay the GOP back for the Bush Air National Guard story.


John McCain did an interview with CBS News, in which he made a serious error in describing the timing of the Sunni Awakening. The interview aired last night on the CBS Evening News. Well, an interview aired. Just not that one.

Keith Olbermann pointed out the discrepancy on MSNBC's Countdown. Here's Keith's report, followed by my own reporting, including a curious memo from the McCain campaign from yesterday, entitled, "BARACK OBAMA VS. CBS ON THE SURGE."

As you know, when it comes to media love, one day you're in, and the next, you're out. So it must seem to perennial Project White House contestant John McCain, the media darling of the 2000 presidential election, who, despite a heartfelt bond with the Washington press corps, could not quite parlay his "Maverick" title into a runway stroll to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. Eight years older and deeper in debt, the media and the country at large have shifted their spotlight away from McCain and found Barack Obama, the next big thing in political fashion. That's how the story goes, anyway.

But are there substantive reasons behind the image woes of the man who would become our nation's oldest elected president, or does the media simply like younger faces filling its screens and glossy magazine covers? We'll get to that in a moment. First, let's consider the latest "blame the media" line coming out of Camp McCain.

On Tuesday, McCain released a new campaign video titled, "The Media is in Love with Barack." Set to the lilting strains of Frankie Valli's "Cant Take My Eyes off of You," the effective ad is a greatest hits compilation of what the Arizona senator's team considers slam-dunk evidence of how the media fawns all over Obama. The snippets, some more out of context than others, paint a damming portrait of starry-eyed affection. Visitors to McCain's website can even vote on which of two versions of the ad they find more entertaining. Yet, on the very same day the video was put forth, McCain himself was interviewed by CBS News about the new spot:

Couric: Finally, Senator, your campaign released a video today complaining about what you call the media's love affair with Sen. Obama. (LAUGHTER) Clearly you believe you're getting unfair coverage. Why do you think that's the case?

McCain: I don't think so. I think ...it is what it is. I'm a big boy. And I'm enjoying every minute of the campaigning. And I'm certainly not complaining. And, in fact, I think it's fun to watch.

How's that for straight talk? In essence, when asked about McCain's highly choreographed complaining about Obama love, McCain responds, "I'm not complaining."

The sexiest campaign coverage was reserved for Hillary Clinton's primary run, according to many political observers. This reporter, himself, has been referred to as "sexiest" innumerable times by readers on these forums, and while I did like the way my hair looked in that one picture from the Philadelplhia event, I think they're just flattering...wait, I'm getting something in my earpiece...how's that?...Sexist? From The New York Times:

Angered by what they consider sexist news coverage of Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton's bid for the Democratic presidential nomination, many women and erstwhile Clinton supporters are proposing boycotts of the cable networks, putting up videos on a "Media Hall of Shame," starting a national conversation about sexism and pushing Mrs. Clinton's rival, Senator Barack Obama, to address the matter.

Most of the media types who commented for the piece acknowledged problems in spots, but defended the overall tenor of their coverage.

The piece goes on to say that Howard Dean, among others, are calling for a "national discussion" of sexism.

I'm all for that, because I have a hard time with this one. I don't think the coverage was that sexist, relatively speaking, but then again, a fair amount of sexism seems to be the norm in this country. Sometimes, it is hard to know whether something is sexist or not. But usually, you know it when you see it.

I remember sitting through a Super Bowl in the recent past, in which each half-million dollar commercial was more sexist than the last, culminating with a flaming horse fart singeing a beauty queen. That was sexist.

Then again, there's the verbal interplay and flirtation that goes on even on these pages.

In between those two poles is where we can have our talk.

A memorable gaffe during the 2004 re-election campaign of George W. Bush happened in a White House press conference. He was tossed what seemed like a soft-ball question from then-Time reporter John Dickerson, "What is your biggest mistake?" Bush's reply got replayed over and over. The footage got more air time than the entire press conference - not because of what he said, but because he didn't seem to have an answer.

Now comes the 2008 version.

CBS news anchor Katie Couric has asked the "leading candidates" (CBS's definition) in taped interviews a series of identical questions. The series will air December 5th. One of them being, "What's your biggest mistake?"

Here are the responses:
- "Well, I don't know the biggest mistake. I mean, I've had - made - made a number of mistakes."
- "Well, the biggest mistake that I ever made was when I was a teenager. Because I got involved with drinking and trying drugs."
- "Voting for the War in Iraq."
-" Well, I think from the political perspective, the biggest mistake I made was believing that my personal disagreement with abortion..."
- "Well, I've made lots of mistakes."