From a reader with a better memory for my writing than I have:

I had CBS on watching Guliani then Palin on Wednesday night. Couric didn’t seem too happy before Palin’s speech; you could hear resentment in her voice. However, after the speech, I could have sworn she seemed a little enthusiastic. Even the journalists on the floor she asked about Palin seemed upbeat. I then remembered something you wrote four years ago:
What I find interesting is that the media seemingly have started to realize that they’ve been shamelessly backing one horse in this race [Kerry]— and the wrong one. I think it started when reporters realized they had to cover the Swift Boat Vets story, albeit dismissively at first. But since then they have written stories about how Kerry is “off-message” and how his staff needs to be shaken up, although these stories are written with a slightly funereal tone. Albert Hunt of the Wall Street Journal refers to the “faltering Kerry campaign.” Dan Rather reports that campaign leaders say there’s “no need to panic” — always a sign of panic. Why the change of heart? The obvious answer is that five major polls show Kerry slipping. But a larger dynamic is that journalists are a herd species. The media move in large packs, capable of suddenly switching directions due to the spooking of just a few critters up at the front. Individuals of the species may be susceptible to traits such as courage and integrity, but as a group they are power-worshippers. Nothing to them is more powerful than popularity — and nothing more popular than power. When you gain it, the press tends to go soft on you, regardless of the merits. When you lose it, they tend to pounce.
Now, based on your posts on Quinn I see another isolated example boosting your point four years ago. Could it be that the Obama story (a great one, no doubt) is losing its luster and perhaps one journalist after another will flock to the Palin story? Like a small leak in a dam, then a crack, then a huge cascade–maybe the herd mentality of the media will start to run from Obama to Palin (or maybe to some extent McCain as I think his story hit some Thursday night).
I guess we’ll see.