Faster Politics III - Coming soon: Mid-October conventions? By Mickey Kaus

The Democrats are looking at a post-Labor Day convention in 2004. Mickey "Nettrap" Kaus asks, why didn't the parties think of this earlier? Well, my guess is TV. The fall season usually starts soon after Labor Day, and the networks wouldn't be inclined to participate if it meant interrupting that. But things have changed. More shows are delaying their season premieres in order to have more episodes available in sweeps periods, for one thing.

But more importantly, the networks are carrying less convention coverage every cycle, and so the parties don't have to cater to their needs. But mid-October? No way. Between the baseball playoffs and the TV season in full swing, no one would pay attention. It's all we can do to get three or four hours of debates up, and they're a lot more interesting than conventions. Of course, so is almost everything else.