The mystery woman of the great white north, Sarah Palin, introduced herself to the nation last night as a regular "gal." And now Americans craving more information about the would-be vice president of the United States will turn to . . .
Yes, their supermarket checkout counters. There, a cornucopia of no fewer than four celebrity publications -- People, Us Weekly, OK! and the National Enquirer -- will shout with headlines about the young governor of Alaska.
Is she the plucky and competent everywoman, ready to fight the pointy-headed elites of Washington? Or is she a perilously unprepared naif, cynically offered as confirmation of John McCain's "maverick" brand?
In a more perfect nation, we wouldn't rely on mags that live for Brangelina and "They're just like us" features to set the course for democracy. But that's just me, an irritable old-media throwback.
These glossies have readership that newspapers could only pray for. (People is a juggernaut with a circulation of 3.8 million and as many as 43 million readers, counting all the eyes that pass over a single copy.) And they're highly influential, particularly in the lives of some young women who otherwise don't pay a lot of attention to politics.
"People love to vote in 'American Idol,' but they often can't be bothered to vote in anything else," OK! editor in chief Sarah Ivens told my colleague James Hohmann on Wednesday. "Hopefully this interest in the personality will push them out to make decisions."
Like the rest of the media, the tabloids are far from a monolith.
This week, People fulfills a now-familiar role in our politics, treating Palin to flattering family portraits and a chance to tell her story, complicated by the birth of her Down syndrome child and her teenage daughter's pregnancy.
"That's what we do, tell our readers who these people are, what's the fabric of their lives," said Larry Hackett, People's managing editor.
Palin's story of raising a special-needs child and four other children while serving as governor was so much in the magazine's "sweet spot" that it already had a profile ready when news of the VP pick broke.
"We already thought she was a terrific story," Hackett said. "Now, she has become the most compelling public figure out there."
Should you reach to the other side of the chewing gum display for Us, you'll get a decidedly different take, as evidenced by the headline "Babies, Lies & Scandal."
