Invesco Field

The strength of Barack Obama's acceptance speech lay not in its eloquence but in the candidate's determination to answer, methodically and clearly, the remaining doubts about him.

Woven into the theme of America's promise, Obama methodically answered the hard questions. Is he an exotic elitist, remote from the concerns and values of the sinking American middle class? No, he was raised by middle-class Americans who had their own ups and downs and taught him those same values. Is he too diffident to fight for victory in a harsh election? No, he told the Republicans to bring it. He directly confronted insinuations about his patriotism, then refuted their claims about John McCain's judgment, experience, and independence (and hung Bush around McCain's neck).  read more »

Shout out to the XFL!

The ongoing TV coverage of the Democratic convention at Invesco field is borrowing a move from the football playbook.

The stadium skycam is currently zipping around, flying low over over the field.

From a couch inside the CNN Election Express mobile studio-newsroom, the Media Mob is watching the feed as the skycam flies low over the crowd.

My goodness: Look at the top of Stevie Wonder's head!

Ever since the Obama campaign announced that Barack Obama would be giving his acceptance speech of the Democratic nomination inside Invesco Field at Mile High—the enormous stadium where the Denver Broncos play football—critics and supporters alike have wondered whether the spectacle played too readily into the “Obama as celebrity” storyline that the McCain campaign has pushed so hard.

Already will.i.am, Sheryl Crow and other recording artists have performed live. The smooth female voice announcing the political speakers and performing artists is identical to the one that introduces actors at the Academy Awards.

But whatever the risks, there is at least one guaranteed upside to gathering such a big captive audience which was revealed by Ray Rivera, the chair of the Obama campaign in Colorado.  read more »