What is the Impact of a Political Endorsement?

That was the question on Talk of the Nation (October 25, 2004). Or, rather, that was the topic and questions were along the lines of "What does a movie star's endorsement of a candidate matter?" At some point in the program, they mentioned some kind of survey that was looking to uncover the celebrities whose endorsement would influence you (the nebulous "you" taking the survey, not necessarily "you" as in the person reading this post right now) as a voter. The results were surprising. In order of most influential to least, the top four celebrities were:

1. Oprah Winfrey
2. [I don't remember this celebrity's name]
3. Jon Stewart (of The Daily Show)
4. Charles Barkley

OK. I can understand Oprah hitting this list, and I am not too surpised about her nailing the top position. She's got a lot of pull, and many, many fans. She's well respected in several circles.

[I wish I remembered the number two slot so I could comment on it ... but I don't! Grrrrr.]

I can also understand Jon Stewart making this list and coming in fairly high. Let's face it, his nightly faux news program is often far more insightful than the so-called "real" news shows.

But Charles Barkley? Charles freakin' Barkley?!? Are you kidding me?

[There is no connection between the blog I just linked, this story, or even Charles Barkley. I just wanted to link it because I found it on Monday and thought this would be a fun way to share it with my readers. Enjoy.]

Audio link to the Talk of the Nation story is here.