Rob Walker
The New York Times
Herman Cain’s spectacular rise and subsequent flameout. The “swaggering gunslinger” Rick Perry’s “oops” moment on live TV. Rick Santorum and Ron Paul rising from the fringes to challenge Mitt Romney. Is it any wonder, said Rob Walker, that this year’s Republican presidential race is being compared to soap operas and reality TV? Ratings for the GOP debates are setting new records, and no wonder: They’re “the best thing happening in pop culture right now.”
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Pretentious sourpusses sniff that politics is too important to be treated like Survivor, a horse race, or a popularity contest. But “horse races are exciting. Elections are popularity contests.” And no reality TV show features characters remotely as fascinating as would-be presidents, with their “singular blend of masochism and megalomania.”
If it’s a “high-minded examination of issues” you prefer, fine: Go to Romney’s website to read his 160-page economic plan. As for me, give me the “dramatic tension, narrative richness, and exciting plot twists” of candidates vying for the White House. It’s far more entertaining than anything you’ll see on The X Factor.
