It’s one of the worst kept secret in local politics, but Bay News 9 producer Liz Rosenblum confirmed to a source that former USF president and Democrat Betty Castor and Republican blogger and political consultant Chris Ingram will be the station’s political analysts as part of its coverage this election season.
I don’t know, for me, the choice of Betty Castor as a political analyst seems uninspired. Sure, she will lend some gravitas to the programming, but will she say aaannnyyyttthhhiiinnnggg interesting on-air? I doubt it. Instead, she’ll play it safe, not saying anything that might piss of the Tampa Yacht & Country Club crowd.
As for Ingram, I’ve been reading for him for a while and I think his selection is a local version of CNN’s hiring, which I really liked, of Erick Erickson. Bring in someone on the ground who knows the real players, not the has-beens from when, oh, say, when Castor was a force. Of course, Ingram is one of Adam Smith’s favorite sources, so that won’t hurt him. Dude is good on TV also.
Anyway, the hiring of Castor and Ingram does exactly what it it supposed to do: put an odd couple in a pressure-cooker situation. Hilarity ensues.
