Primary Time: Attention Turns to the Next Round of Primaries
It's an alphabet soup of states now as as cable pundits predict the next primaries. Oklahoma is still up in the air -- "we'll have to wait the old-fashioned way," Wolf Blitzer remarked -- but the night appears to be a firm Kerry win. Chris Wallace said "we'll be up for much of the night seeing who wins" in Oklahoma. We? I'm taking a break, Chris... 11:10:59 PM

Primary Time: One Final Round of Primary Media Notes
Judy Woodruff: "Tonight is a night with more than one winner" // Where was Campbell Brown? She traded her Hardball roundtable seat for a live shot inside Dean's noisy rally // Wolf Blitzer called tonight "the biggest day yet" in the presidental campaign // Bill Press with a cool quote: "John Edwards had a good night tonight. Wesley Clark had a good night tonight. John Kerry had a great night tonight!" He said the only question is "Clark, Edwards -- how long do they stay alive?" // Bill Kristol on FOX: "It's hard to believe this whole process has been going two weeks...and it could be over in two weeks"... 11:09:25 PM

Primary Night: Oklahoma Still Too Close to Call
"We expect that when all the votes are now in, Clark will probably win...but we're not ready to call it," Blitzer said at 11pm. He said that CNN's policy is to not call a winner when there is less than a 1% difference between the candidates. On CNBC, John Seigenthaler said that the state will go to Clark "in a squeaker." 11:04:28 PM

Primary Time: FOX First to Project N.M. Caucus Winner
At 10:40pm, the lower-third on FOX said that the network "projects John Kerry wins New Mexico caucus." CNN and MSNBC holding off at this point. "Looks like a pretty serious race unfolding" in New Mexico, Wolf Blitzer said at 10:43pm. Analyst Carlos Watson pointed out that a high number of absentee ballots were submitted in the state... 10:44:31 PM

Primary Time: Notes, Notes, Notes from the Primary Coverage
At 10:40pm, CNN projected delegates in Delaware, Missouri, and South Carolina // The MoveOn.org ad aired on CNN at 10:34pm // "[Dean] has done miserably tonight," Blitzer stated // "This is the business of being a candidate for president, and it's not for amateurs," Bob Novak said, pointing out that the two "new boys" -- Clark and Dean -- didn't do very well // The Oklahoma hype continues: Wolf calls it "incredibly close" and "the biggest drama;" Chris Wallace calls it "the one big nailbiter tonight"... 10:41:57 PM

Primary Time: Media wants "the race to go on"
"One must never underestimate the power of the national news media when it seeks a desired outcome," John Ellis writes (by way of Instapundit). "What Matthews and his colleagues in the heavily populated Democratic cheering section of the national news media want, above all, is for the race to go on. Part of this is self interest and part of this is belief." An interesting post... 10:37:03 PM

Primary Time: The Primary Media Notes Just Keep Coming
"The voting has ended in all seven states," Blitzer said at 10pm // The CNN screen with six reporters spread out across the country looked very cool // Chris Wallace presented his "greatest hits" polling data // On FOX, Zell Miller commented on Kerry's team: "I think they better wait a few weeks before they kill the fatted calf and start celebrating and being merry." Bill Bennett talking to Sean and Alan: "Dean is done, but he doesn't know it"... 10:20:54 PM

Primary Time: Hume Hands FOX Coverage Over to Hannity
A sign of an early night?: FOX turned coverage over to Hannity & Colmes just after 9:40pm, twenty minutes earlier than scheduled... 9:51:42 PM

Primary Time: Critique of CNN Election Coverage
Some thoughts from TVHeads: "CNN really has been terrible so far [with election season coverage]. Wolf Blitzer needs to go. Sorry Wolf fans. He's been around forever, it's time for him to go. Judy Woodruff, Jeff Greenfield, and Larry King aren't exactly young either." Another comment: "FNC deserves the accolades and ratings, in my opinion." 9:46:54 PM

Primary Time: Even More Primary Media Notes
Oklahoma continues to make for fun quotes: Shep Smith calls it "the tightest race of the night," and Wolf Blitzer describes it as a "fierce battle" // Susan Estrich called Kerry's night 'phenonenal:' "It's a great night for John Kerry...a month ago, most people said [he] had no chance for the nomination" // "Kerry is already beginning to find silver linings in Edwards' victory in SC," Carl Cameron reported // The phrase "two-person race" keeps ringing in my head... 9:46:10 PM

Primary Time: Media Notes: ND Projections; Voters "Still Shopping"
9:24pm: FOX projects that John Kerry will win the North Dakota primary. CNN followed at 9:27 // Bob Woodward: "People are still shopping" for a candidate // Wolf Blitzer called Lieberman "someone all of us know, somebody all of us like" // Edwards in a Brit Hume interview: "I dont want to be VP. I'm running for president" // Reuters offers this story about Joe Trippi's move to MSNBC as a political analyst. No word if he'll be around after tonight... 9:28:42 PM

Primary Time: Kerry Is Up; Will Media Drag Him Down?
"Kerry supporters brace yourself, here it comes," a DU post says. "In the last few minutes the media has started the new pumping game. They are now slowly attacking Kerry." Do you agree? E-mail your comments. 9:19:03 PM

Primary Time: Dennis Miller Fails; What The Hell Is CNBC Thinking?
Dennis Miller's show is a joke. Let's just admit it. On a big night -- seven primaries -- the show was taped in advance. Dennis admitted it in the first five minutes of the show. He told Tim Russert that "you're fast becoming the new Cronkite," then proceeded to ask him questions that were no longer relevant. Miller hosted from Burbank, where it's only 6pm right now... 9:12:29 PM

Primary Time: Arizona Called at the Stroke of Nine, & Other Notes
Brit Hume on FOX at exactly 9:00pm and one second: "John Kerry, winner in the state of Arizona." Eight seconds later, Wolf Blitzer on CNN: "John Kerry will win in the state of Arizona" // Larry King talked to Howard Dean at the top of the hour // Ed Lavandera interviewed a cross-section of voters in an interesting segment... 9:09:02 PM

Primary Time: Goodbye Joe, Part Two
The cablers repeated an AP alert that Joe Lieberman will drop out of the race around 8:55pm. All three channels had the news by 8:58. Mort Kondracke on FOX called Lieberman "the only real centrist candidate," but said that the center "just doesn't exist in America." Dee Dee told Chris that "if he doesn't" drop out tonight, "he should...There's no point for him to go on." At 9:01pm, Blitzer said that John King confirmed the information... 9:05:29 PM

Primary Time: Scarborough's "Two Big Media Stories"
Joe Scarborough identifies the "two big media stories today." One: "Edwards using the South Carolina win to project across the country." Two: Front page USA Today story saying that John Kerry would beat GW Bush in head-to-head poll matchup. "That's huge for democrats going to the polls across the country." 8:37:19 PM

Primary Time: Another Round of Primary Media Notes
On MSNBC, Dee Dee Myers said she was impressed by Edwards' television presence. "This is powerful stuff coming in over the airwaves" // "CNN is using a countdown clock to the 9pm poll closings // "I think there's a lot of energy in the party right now," Joe Trippi understated on MSNBC. "It's been there for a year, its been building and building"... 8:36:16 PM

Primary Time: Oklahoma Provides Suspense Tonight
The anchors are going to have fun with Oklahoma tonight. A sampling of their language thus far: Wolf Blitzer: "very very close race...up in the air;" Dan Lothian: "a very tight race;" Brit Hume: "we are nowhere near in a position to call that race;" John Seigenthaler: "up for grabs..." 8:36:07 PM

Primary Time: More Notes from the Primary Coverage
CNN's Kelly Wallace repeated news from a producer on Kerry's plane, thus offering the first reaction from the front-runner // FOX seemed to copy CNN, implementing lower-thirds with state-by-state results // Tim Russert called March 2 (the real Super Tuesday) "the big shootout" // Seigenthaler at 8:26pm: "It's a long night to go..." 8:30:32 PM

Primary Time: Dean: "Imploding;" "0 for 9;" "Thrashed"
Dean is receiving the full pundit assault. NBC's Ron Allen called Dean "essentially 0 for 9 in the primaries." Major Garrett tried to report despite the Dean audience's clapping: "There's no spin whatsoever on the inside of the dean campaign," he reported. "They know they're going to get thrashed across the country tonight." Susan Estrich called it a tough night for Dean: "You can talk about being the energizer bunny...but where do you go to?" She used the word imploding. 8:27:46 PM

Primary Time: Goodbye, Joe
Perhaps a scoop for CNN: At 8:21pm, Wolf Blitzer tossed to Bruce Morton at Lieberman headquarters: "This really was the end of the road for Joe Lieberman...what we're told here [is that the candidate] will be having a meeting at their Virginia headquarters starting about ten minutes from now...Which means, I suppose, that we could get some I'm-wrapping-it-up speech tonight, or they could wait and save it for tomorrow." 8:25:49 PM

Primary Time: Greenfield On Edwards' Media Manipulation
Wolf Blitzer asked if Jeff Greenfield was surprised by the short length of Edwards' speech: "No, because it's what you do when you have command of the TV cameras, and you want your message out -- knowing that at eight o'clock, the networks would project big John Kerry wins." 8:16:17 PM

Primary Time: Media Notes -- Projections, Quotes
CNN and FOX called the races in Missouri and Delaware at 8pm. Wolf Blitzer called Oklahoma "a three way virtual tie" // FOX calls the event "Super Tuesday I" // "I have never seen the democratic activist base so energized," Tim Russert said on CNBC. "They have become united with a mission of defeating George Bush" // FOX's studio is incredible... 8:10:30 PM

Primary Time: First Projections: Edwards for SC At Exactly 7pm
At the top of the 7pm hour, FOX and CNN both called the SC race for Edwards, the minute polls closed. CNN.com sent a news alert within five minutes. FOX and CNBC went live to Edwards at 8pm; CNN followed one minute later. The audio was bad, though. 8:04:40 PM

Cablers Plan Extensive Primary Coverage Tonight
The cablers seem to be sticking to their trusted strategies with primary coverage tonight. On FOX, Brit Hume will report from 8 to 10, then hand it over to H&C; and finish with Greta until 1. CNN coverage starts at 7, with Wolf and company from Atlanta. Larry interrupts at 9, then the team is back until midnight. Larry repeats (!) at midnight, and Newsnight follows at 1am. Beginning at 7 on MSNBC, Chris Matthews will host a Hardball panel including Howard, Dee Dee, Jacques, Joe, Ron – the usual. A new addition: former Dean manager Joe Trippi! Campbell Brown not listed though…At midnight, Keith will do a live recap. CableNewser moment-by-moment analysis will begin at 8:00pm ET… 5:20:18 PM

Primary Ratings Increase From 2000; Another NEP Test Tonight
In the Hollywood Reporter today, Andrew Grossman (who kicks ass, BTW) points out that cable news net ratings of NH Primary coverage were up 25% from 2000. Quoting CNN poli-dir Hannon: Tonight is "going to test our system more than the single states. But we’ve been pleased with how the National Election Pool has operated." 3:57:00 PM

Whoever's Typing the FOX Chyron Needs Spellcheck
Dave writes in to point out "not one – not two – but THREE errors on FNC’s text-box" during the Ricin press conference last hour. "First, FNC identified Senate Majority Leader Frist as the Senate MINORITY Leader. This was corrected after three viewings." He also notes that FNC wrote "along" when they meant to write “a long,” and wrote that the "principle focus is on safety," rather than principal. Does someone at 1211 Avenue of the Americas need a spelling lesson? 3:55:06 PM

Greta Van Susteren, Jet-Setting
Greta is going to have a long week: "Hours after we shut off the lights at 1 a.m. on 'On the Record' [tonight], several of us will jump a plane for California. We will be in Los Angeles for two nights, Wednesday and Thursday. And, to test our strength when sleep deprived, we will jump the 'red eye' and head back East. Friday night's show will be out of our regular studio in D.C." What a tough life, being a TV anchor... 3:54:28 PM

MSNBC Premieres Reagan Documentary Sunday Night
MSNBC has announced they will air “The Great Communicator: Ronald Reagan in his Own Words,” a one-hour special hosted by Brian Williams on Sunday, Feb. 8th (10 to 11pm). It’s the weekend of Reagan’s birthday. I’ll post the press release link when it comes online. First an H&L; profile of Rush Limbaugh, now a documentary on Reagan; what exactly is MSNBC’s next move?... 3:52:13 PM

Natalie Morales Sits Down At "Early Today" Anchor Desk
NBC has put out a press release announcing Natalie Morales’s ‘Early Today’ anchoring. It says she will continue to “contribute to MSNBC.” Monday was her first day waking up in time for the 4:30am show; Amy Robach had anchored in January... 3:31:26 PM

Kurtz Previews the Primary Punditry
Howard Kurtz presents a handy viewers guide to how the media will react to tonight's primary results. Highlights: "If Howard Dean wins any state: MSNBC will give smelling salts to its embedded Dean reporter, who was near death from boredom, and start putting him on the air again." "No matter what happens: The pundits will start chanting that it's not too late for Hillary." Read it all. 1:28:12 PM

Anderson Cooper is an "Infohunk." So What's That?
Anderson Cooper is called "a perfect example" of an "infohunk" in today's Indianapolis Star. Apparently infohunk is a new genre of celebrity; here's a web site devoted to them. 1:20:33 PM

Deborah Norville Explains Her MSNBC Motivation
Verne Gay profiles Deborah Norville today's Newsday. "Underwatched MSNBC may seem like an unusual place to re-enter the mainstream, but Norville explains, "Ever since my professional life took an unexpected turn, I have taken the blinders off." She'd never done a live interview show, and here was the chance." More... 1:08:02 PM

Whoops! "Fox News Channel's Chris Matthews..."
A big mistake in a St. Louis Post-Dispatch story this morning. Quoting an article about how TV turns elections into horse race: "Fox News Channel's Chris Matthews is another who worries about TV's tendency to cover the competition over the issues of a campaign." Now I don't know about you, but I can't imagine Chris at FOX... 9:07:49 AM

Quote of the day
From The Phoenix: 'Web sites and new[s] services, like CNN and MSNBC, have jumped on the events of Sunday's half time show, splashing giant photographs of celebrities on their home pages. This in not 'news.' The word 'news' has, as a synonym, the word intelligence. This implies that we, as a society, have respect for the news media, news reporters and editors. They are, by default, trusting them to decide what is important. Sufficed to say, that respect has been shaken of late. Maybe rightly so." 9:07:23 AM

ABC's Alina Cho to CNN
Starr also reports that Alina Cho, formerly an overnight anchor for ABC, is joining CNN as a general assignment weekend reporter... 8:58:24 AM

Ashleigh Banfield Keeps Negotiating...
Michael Starr keeps on top of the Ashleigh Banfield story in this morning's NYPost. Quoting her agent: "She's still there and she's been working right along - we're not closing anything yet and we're looking at her options. I honestly don't know what's going to happen. There's nothing new. She has three opportunities she's considering and she's taking her time figuring out what she wants to do." 8:57:07 AM

M.J. in "Overkill Hall of Fame:" Is Celebrity Coverage Dangerous?
American Journalism Review's Jill Rosen asks if, "in era with so many sources of news, is celebrity overkill a major threat to the republic?" "If anyone is taking the brunt of the blame for exacerbating the media's inability to know when to say when, it's the 24-hour news operations," Rosen writes. And Anderson Cooper is quoted discussing the Michael Jackson case: "We try to keep it in perspective as much as you can. But this will probably be in the overkill hall of fame." A must-read... 12:37:10 AM

Cable Pundits Like "former football players...on halftime shows"
"Talk is cheap," Neal Justin writes in Tuesday's Star Tribune. "CNN, Fox News and MSNBC turn over much of their programming to journalists and pundits who bicker around coffee tables, much as former football players break down the action on halftime shows. 'Talking heads come cheap and real reporting costs money,' [Matt] Felling said. 'The decision was made in the boardroom, not the newsroom.'" 12:35:56 AM