And that’s all well and good, of course, but Boehner attracts eyeballs (and, thus, either ratings or pageviews, depending on the medium) not only because he is stepping into an important, prestigious and influential role. There’s a lowest common denominator element at play in the attention surrounding Boehner as well, and, as such, the marauding bands want to know: Will Williams ask Boehner about “the whole crying thing”? The New York Times, for one, viewed the next Speaker of the House’s tears as an appropriate jumping off point to discuss
Stupid question or not (or is it true that there are no stupid questions, only stupid answers?), the issue of Boehner’s tears ties into the way politicians and other public figures are expected to act, and how the media is anticipated to weigh in. During her bid to become president of the United States, Hillary Clinton‘s tears (and her laughter) were, for better or worse, the stuff of headlines and photo captions, and deemed by a whole slew of news outlets, print and web alike, both respected and… not… as not only an interesting talking point, but one that was important and relevant to her role as a politician and public figure. So it’ll be interesting to see whether Williams will deem Boehner’s tears – and the impetus behind them – a legitimate topic of conversation as he steps ever further into the spotlight.