Obama’s infomericial is a ratings hit

A segment on Thursday’s episode of the Daily Show entitled, “Barack’s Millions,” featured a story on the half-hour $3 million infomercial that Barack Obama aired on seven different television networks during primetime Wednesday night.

The infomercial included four examples of middle-class Americans who have fallen on hard times financially and laid out Obama’s plans for his presidency that included a better health care plan, a better approach to foreign affairs, and better tax plans that would help each of these struggling citizens and many more like them across the country.

The infomercial appeared on three broadcast channels (CBS, NBC, FOX), three cable networks (BET, MSNBC, TV One), and Univision – a spanish-language channel – and was seen by 33.55 million viewers, according to Nielsen Media Research.

“I was shocked by the number Obama was able to draw,” said Chairman of CBS Leslie Moonves, to Bill Carter of the New York Times. “It’s just a stunning number.”

The last presidential campaign to attempt such on-air programming was Ross Perot in 1996 when he bought a half-hour special on three networks. The ratings for this fell short of Obama’s infomerical with only 22.7 million people tuning in, according to an article in the New York Times.

After the infomercial aired, Senator John McCain’s campaign released a statement that read, “As anyone who has bought anything from an infomercial knows, the sales-job is always better than the product. Buyer beware,” according to the Caucus Blog on the New York Times website.

A senator and a convicted felon?

A segment on Tuesday’s episode of the Daily Show entitled, “Meet Your New Cellmate – Ted Stevens,” featured a story on how Alaskan Senator Ted Stevens was convicted Monday of seven felony counts of ethics violations.

The 84-year-old Stevens was said to have knowingly failed to report various gifts he had received from friends – one of which, Bill Allen, who owns Veco Corporation, an Alaskan oil company.

According to the Miami Herald, the gifts totaled over $250,000 in renovations and items for the senator’s home in Girdwood, Alaska including:

1. $29,000 fish sculpture
2. $5,000 gas grill
3. $3,200 stained glass window
4. $2,700 vibrating massage chair
5. $1,000 sled dog

Stevens blamed the verdict on “misconduct” by prosecutors and said to Neil A. Lewis of the New York Times, “I will fight this unjust verdict with every ounce of energy I have.”

Steven’s defense centered around the idea that he did not ask for these gifts and had no use for them.

After the verdict was announced Harry Reid, the Senate majority leader, said, “This verdict is a personal tragedy for our colleague Ted Stevens, but it is an important reminder that no man is above the law. Senator Stevens must now respect the outcome of the judicial process and the dignity of the United States Senate,” according to an article in the New York Times.

Stevens faces up to 35 years in jail – five years per count – but will likely receive much less if any prison time. Some say it is even possible that he will be pardoned by President Bush before he leaves office, according to the article.

The verdict comes only a week before the senator is up for another senate term which he still intends to seek.