Palin speaks at higher grade level than Biden?
By Jimmy Orr | 10.04.08
Elections are full of surprises.
Take John McCain’s recent suspension of his campaign, for example. Or the surprise pick of Sarah Palin to be his running mate. Or the John Edwards affair. Or Joe Biden criticizing his own campaign for a negative ad on McCain (oh yeah, he took that back).
For some, a study showing Sarah Palin spoke at a higher grade level than Joe Biden in Thursday night’s debate, will come as a surprise.
Grade level
CNN is reporting that a language monitoring service concluded that Palin’s remarks on Thursday were ranked at a higher grade level than Joe Biden’s. She spoke at between a 9th and 10th grade level while Joe Biden spoke at about an eighth grade level.
The only real reason this makes any news, of course, is because of the trouncing Palin received following her disastrous interview with Katie Couric. Following the series of interviews, questions about Palin’s intelligence were raised throughout the media free world.
With her performance on Thursday night widely reviewed as positive and if she continues to have more favorable outings with the press, the story will be less on her abilities and more on the top of the ticket.
Palin VS Biden
The study also shows that both candidates spoke around the same number of words. Palin spoke 5,235 words - of which the word “maverick” was roughly 5,000 of those.
While Biden uttered some 5,492 words, which is impressive considering that in prior debates that’s the length of one sentence.
Other results of the study show that they scored evenly on the numbers of letters per word used (4.4 letters each) and they drew a statistical tie on the amount of sentences per paragraph - 2.7 for Biden and 2.6 for Palin.
In terms of ease of reading, the remarks matched up closely as well with Biden scoring a 66.7 and Palin scoring a 62.4. The study says a 100 is the easiest to read.
Easier to understand
But a higher grade level doesn’t mean what you’re saying is understandable. CNN brings up a Palin sentence toward the end of the debate.
“What I would do, also, if that were ever to happen, though, is to continue the good work he is so committed to of putting government back on the side of the people and get rid of the greed and corruption on Wall Street and in Washington,” Palin said.
The firm grades that sentence at a super doctorate level giving it an 18.3 grade.
“When she said it, it sounded good, but on paper it’s a completely different animal,” said the President of the Global Language Monitor. “It’s like, what is that?”
Joe Biden
As for Joe Biden, the firm graded the following sentence at the 15th grade level:
“The middle class under John McCain’s tax proposal, 100 million families, middle-class families, households to be precise, they got not a single change; they got not a single break in taxes.”
In reviewing that sentence the firm’s president seemed to be impressed by Biden’s restraint.
“In a typical Joe Biden thing, this sentence would serve as a launching point to even more complex and convoluted statements,” he said.
We’re smarter than you
So are conservatives jumping on this study saying, “Palin is smarter than Biden?” Not really. Ed Morrissey over at Hot Air discounts it as meaningless.
Reading level was and is calculated using a calculation of average numbers for sentences per paragraph, words per sentence, and syllables per word.
This analysis just shows that Palin used a somewhat higher ratio in this calculation than Biden. That doesn’t necessarily make her a better communicator, not even if people ignore content altogether.
So while this gives Palin supporters a reason to crow about her trouncing Biden’s supposed intellect, it’s really meaningless, especially with the slight gap noted by CNN. They’re better off reviewing Biden’s gaffes, which is a much more abundant resource.
Past politicians
As a point of reference the firm ranked other politicians in past debates as well and puts Abraham Lincoln at the top of their list speaking at just over an 11th grade level. Joe Lieberman was next in line at about 10th grade. While at the bottom of the heap is Ross Perot at a sixth grade level.
President George W. Bush spoke at a 7th grade level in his prior debates while Ronald Reagan came just short of 10th grade with a 9.8 rating.
How’d they figure it?
The firm says they used a modified Flesch-Kincaid formulation for their study. Oh yeah, that formula. Although regular readers of The Vote would know instantly what that formula is, for newcomers we’ll provide it for you (and of course we didn’t Google it.)
0.39 x Average No. of words in sentences + 11.8 x Average No. of syllables per word - 15.59.
<< VP debate shatters TV ratings record | MainComments
3. Jonathon | 10.04.08
That’s a completely ridiculous analysis, if the example sentence is somehow given a grade level of 18.3… That sentence is poor even if it came from a 7th or 8th grader. Apparently that analysis just gives high grades for run-on sentences. stumbling, and grammatical obfuscations.
4. treetracker | 10.04.08
Keep in mind businesses require their employees to communicate with their customers at a 6th grade reading level. What, really, does that say about the education system of this country? Sad, very very sad.
5. Rich Morin | 10.04.08
As the article makes clear, a run-on sentence scores higher than the two (or three!) sentences that should have been used. So, poor grammar actually produces a higher score. It would be interesting to see how the scores differ after removal of run-on sentences.
Also, it is quite possible to speak (or write) in an intentionally simplified manner. This can be done to make the content understandable by the widest possible audience. It can also be done to increase the impact of the content (eg, Churchill, Hemingway).
7. Jean | 10.04.08
The study was obviously flawed. Many of Sarah Palin’s statements made absolutely no sense at all.
8. CC | 10.04.08
Palin speaks at a higher grade level than Biden, lack of experience may be why, since most Americans understand at eighth grade and below and therefore Biden wins again!
9. Carol Knight | 10.04.08
I have never so interested in politics until the past few years. I think I know why things in our goverment are so messed up, it’s because everyone just talks, talks, talks. In goverment we don’t need ears, soon our ears will breed out of us and we will only have mouths. I sometimes wonder if their mothers ever corrected them for interrupting when someone is speaking.
That is why I like Sarah Palin, manners, actually listens to others, she is a Christian and it shows. I really believe McCain is a christian who really wants to help this country. God Bless
10. mb | 10.04.08
Wow, so they put it in MS word and checked the F-K grade. SUPER IMPRESSIVE. Pretty sure I did this back in middle school, it wasn’t that cool then either.
11. Bruce Becker | 10.04.08
Palin’s speaking pattern is delirium, gibberish. She runs sentences together and throw in words without grammatical connection.
If her vocabulary is 10th grade, that was Karl Rove’s mistake. Her constituents prefer the 8th grade version.
Notice that most people felt that Biden covered the questions with appropriate replies. He answered the questions so that most people could understand him. The follow up poll by CBS of ‘previously undecided independents’ indicates that Biden defeated Palin among that key group of voters as 18% indicated that they now support Biden/Obama and only 10% now changed to support Palin/McCain. By definition, Biden won, as the purpose is to win voters votes, not to impress a vocabulary calculator.
12. John Coch | 10.04.08
“The study also shows that both candidates spoke around the same number of words. Palin spoke 5,235 words - of which the word “maverick” was roughly 5,000 of those.”
This article is 100% accurate. 235 of her words weren’t maverick. Impressive method of raising your reading level with a 3 syllable word… Stop trouncing this nonsense around if you’re not even going to proofread it.
13. Limu | 10.04.08
So few politicians have any real world experience or real world intelligence. Take the recent financial bailout of our financial system as an example. There were low cost alternatives, but the political machine in DC will always choose the most expensive way possible to get anything done. There are no leaders left that have the best interest of the taxpayers at heart. Founding Fathers - where are you now?
14. Hal Quin | 10.04.08
“Grade level” of writing only corresponds to the complexity. For example, using lots of compound complex sentences is supposedly a higher grade level but is more difficult to understand. If you’re prone to rambling and run-on sentences, you can sound like an idiot but still be technically speaking at a higher “grade level” than someone who is clearly communicating in concise sentences using “simpler english”.
Besides, I have trouble believing the results that are based on sentence structure parsed by a computer. After all, newspapers only write in 5th or 6th grade English and you don’t see them using phrases like “You gotcha”, “By Golly”, “Joe SixPack”, “Dog-gone-it”, etc. That’s totally cartoon-like playground english.
15. Crystal | 10.04.08
The in-depth analysis of the words, sentences, paragraphs, and combination of those elements makes my head spin. But it also reminds me of something: in nursing school we were taught to always explain things to patients on a maximum 6th grade level. So thinking that way, and judging from Biden and Obama’s percentage lead among working class “folk”, maybe Biden really does get it. If I didn’t make your head spin.
16. Scotty | 10.04.08
Palin padded her score by turning two syllable words (”new-clear”) into three syllables (”newk-cue-lar”)
Dubya’s been up to that trick for years. Chip off the old block, Sarah.
17. peteman | 10.04.08
What a comfort to know Palin is a full grade level higher than Biden.(probably a Republican-funded language monitoring service) This country is in real trouble when all you guys can squabble about is insignificant fluff like this. Geez, what a joke!!! The rest of the world has got to be laughing and shaking their heads at our stupidity. They are probably taking bets at how much longer before the US is no longer a significant player in world economic affairs.
18. Ann Keegan | 10.04.08
Palin was great and I trust her! With Biden I felt he was talking down to me
Better to have an inexperience Vice-Present than a Than an inexperience
President
19. mudhuts | 10.04.08
Yet, communicating at a 5th grade reaches the broadest audience with clarity and understanding!
20. Susan Robinson | 10.04.08
It appears that the word, ‘maverick,’ a three-syllable word repeated 5,000 times may be attributable to the higher grade level spoken by Palin. If this was the only word spoken by Palin, would the grade level be higher than indicated in the article? Also, wouldn’t it be more prudent to use a lower literacy level when addressing the public (more at the 5th or 6h grade level)? Was Biden more intelligent in that respect?
21. Larry Clifton | 10.04.08
This Jimmy Orr column is written at 5th-grader level. If Orr doesn’t like sister Palin and is so afraid she will get credit for speaking more intelligently than cousin Joey, he should simply say so. Otherwise invariably, people will correctly develop a resistance to Jimmy Orr, not Sarah Palin.
Furthermore, all of the above words could have been avoided by stating:
Jimmy Orr speaks in partisan jabborwockey….
22. Barry | 10.04.08
We should note, of course, that Palin spoke words written for her and memorized by her. So, we might conclude that her speech writers and debate coaches created sound-bytes that were at a 9th and 10th grade level. A better test of her language grade level is to look at transcripts of more spontaneous responses. There is a difference anyone should admit between George Bush responding to a live press conference with follow up questions and prepared speeches written by his speechwriters.
23. Angelou | 10.04.08
Doggone it! Does that mean that if I understood Biden better than Palin, that I have an understanding of a 8th grade level? I think America preffers that than having the media decipher all the beating around the bush done by Palin..
24. Davanna | 10.04.08
Biden is so much more in command of the issues. He also thoughtfully and fully answered each question. I doubt Palin really answered even half of the questions. He was gentlemanly, but tough. She came off as trying to either push Biden’s or the country’s buttons — a very manipulative performance.
Rather than offer concrete policy statements she spewed facile assertions such as “America is a great country and we have to be strong.” When she did attempt to get specific, she screwed up. Palin actually excused herself from having to answer a valid question by saying she had only been “at this” for five weeks. Yet she wants us to accept her as a potential Vice President.
25. H Stout | 10.04.08
My son, who is an engineer was taught to write all reports on a 6th
grade level because that is the easiest level for all people to
understand
26. Joe Bevilacqua | 10.04.08
As a college graduate who teaches public speaking and has written a number of books, I am appalled at the bias of CNN’s so-called “President of the Global Language Monitor”. To say that Palin spoke at a higher grade level than Biden is pure nonsense. She was practically inarticulate and made up words such as “quasibacked down”! I guess because she used bigger (but MADE UP) words that counts as a higher grade level. This “language expert” used 1983 Valley Girl speak himself, “It’s like, what is that?” Now, THAT’S good grammar! I am disgusted with the media. The press corp seems ill educated themselves. Edward R. Murrow is rolling in his grave and Walter Cronkite must be ready to jump off his sail boat and end it all.
27. Parkhillian | 10.04.08
All this really means is that Palin’s debate prep team speaks at a 10th grade level. It appeared to this observer, that Palin memorized her talking points very well.
We’ve seen just how well she speaks on her own without any coaching.
28. Rodger Obubo | 10.04.08
This analysis simply means that Biden is the better communicator, that he reached a wider audience. In reaching an audience at the eight grade level, he has automatically reached all those above that level. He had, on average. more sentences per paragraph which implies they were shorter sentences and therefore more likely to clearer and comprehensible.
Theoretically therefore, more members of the American electorate picked up and understood Biden’s arguments. That is what politicians should always strive to do - reach the widest possible spectrum of the electorate. Joe Biden was the better tactician in the war of words.
Rodger
Huissen, Netherlands
29. ed | 10.04.08
So what grade does Palin rank for using words like “gotcha” and “doggone’it”, not to mention the number of winks she gave to the camera, do those count too?
30. JN | 10.04.08
It’s funny that the article doesnt mention WHY they speak at those grade levels. I was a PR major/advertising minor (just graduated) and we are all taught to write and speak at an 8th grade level. Why is that?
*DRUMROLL*
BECAUSE AMERICANS ARE COMPLETE MORONS. Of course they dont use those words but that is the reason in a nutshell.
All your major publications except for maybe the Wall Street Journal and Popular Mechanics use simple words and simple sentence structure because most intelligent people know that the average American is uneducated, unlearned and sadly; proud of it.
The Average IQ of Americans is 90-100 (the average IQ of college grads is 120-130). Only 16 % of Americans have graduated from college. That is why Biden had to speak at such a low grade level. He was speaking to people with low intelligence levels (Ohioians, PA steel-workers, cops, and all the other people he needs to win this election).
Palin on the other hand was just reading her que cards and I’m suire her owners (excuse me…)handlers told her what to say and she simply repeated it.
Sad but true. Very stupid country. Which is why the polls are so close with non-college graduates and certain regions of the country.
31. Henry Deluca | 10.04.08
Of course Palin is a better pick than Biden. But the race isn’t just between vice-Presidents. McCain needs a message that differentiates him from Obama. Lately McCain and Obama have been sounding too similar on economics. Where is the pro-free market McCain we heard all last summer? McCain needs to remind people that he is McCain, if he wants to pull off a come-from-behind win.
32. Tony | 10.04.08
Thanks alot CNN. This is all we need, to further embolden these kooky American Idol voters out there who see any validity in her candidacy. Let’s forget the “experience” argument for a moment and focus on what is more important: political acumen and worldy knowledge. She lacks any semblence of either. She simply recited talking points - regardless of the question - ad naseum. Ifill couldn’t press her because the Right Wing cried foul before she even began moderating (Ifill is writing a book on black politicians benefiting from the civil rights movement, a book that highlights Obama at one point). The format of the debate was set in Palin’s favor, so as to avoid any lengthy back-and-forth between these two. Unfortunate, because as we saw with Couric, when that occurs, reality bursts forth from the Palin bubble.
Let’s face it folks, Palin is operating on a 1st grade level. She’s horrifically unprepared to be VP, let alone President. I believe the American people are slowly realizing that. That debate did nothing but reaffirm how empty a vessel Sarah Palin is. And how erratic John McCain is for picking her. That political stunt says alot about his judgement.
33. Matt Mungan | 10.04.08
Apparently it this “language monitoring service” only looked at single words at a time rather then sentences. Palin rarely speaks in complete sentences that are grammatically correct. Aw shucks. Golly darn.
34. Susan Williams | 10.04.08
Some of the most beautiful and profound literature we have is written at an upper elementary to intermediate grade level because the writers had such a perfect command of the use of language: Willa Cather’s “My Antonia,” Solzhenitsyn’s “A Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich,” and Aesop’s fables come to mind.
Retired librarian
35. lhummer | 10.04.08
This article is irrelevant. Speaking at a higher grade level does not imply clarity. In fact, just the opposite is true. I am a retired technical writer, and industry standards recommended writing to a fifth grade level despite the fact that our audience was comprised of educated electrical engineers.
36. tettes | 10.04.08
“What I would do, also, if that were ever to happen, though, is to continue the good work he is so committed to of putting government back on the side of the people and get rid of the greed and corruption on Wall Street and in Washington,” Palin said.
If that sentence is judged to be spoken at “super doctorate” level, I do not trust the criteria used AT ALL.
37. John Paul Telhomme | 10.04.08
It will be necessary for the monitoring service to review its methods. There is no doubt that Biden, a US senator for many decades and an active law professor, speaks in complete sentences, each with a whole idea. Palin on the other hand never or occasionally respects the rules of English grammar. Multiple subject and multi-verb sentences are normal for her, as are issues relating to subject-verb agreement. And verb tenses? Those too were butchered.
38. Peter Alexander | 10.04.08
The statistical approach used by “the firm” appears to be ridiculous, as it does not take into account syntax, grammar, or meaning. A monkey might be able to hammer out long sentences of 4 syllable words, but the result would not likely make much sense. I found Biden to be articulate and knowledgeable, and his sentences–though somewaht convoluted at times–made sense and spoke to the questions being asked. Palin spoke in ideological sound bites, stringing together unrelated phrases and concepts without directly answering any of Gwen Ifill’s questions. The study and the attention it is getting is an absurd distraction from the issues. Palin appears to be a condensed and dumbed down, though a somewhat more attractive and likable version of George Bush. We’ve had more than enough failed ideology and empty rhetoric. It’s time for some deep thinking and a pragmatic approach to our nation’s urgent and festering problems.
39. Margaret Larson | 10.04.08
Perhaps we should take points off for lying and see where Ms Palin comes out then?
40. spiritguide | 10.04.08
What BS !!! What they really mean, is that one has to have a high school diploma or college degree ( or be a genius )to figure out what the heck Sarah Palin is trying to say. Biden’s answers were clearer, more coherent, and more detailed… and showed more intelligence, knowledge and experience. It is a known fact that most newspapers are written at a 6th grade level so that virtually everyone can understand them. Anyone is sales knows that is of primary importance that the salesman never speak over the heads of his customer.. but in plain language that is easily understood. As is the case with statistics and studies.. one can surely find a study somewhere that supports whatever conclusion one wishes to present. It is clear that Palin is gutsy and quick… but not terribly bright or knowledgeable…and she is WAY over her head running for VP of the USA. God forbid that the Republican ticket wins and something happens to McCain !!!
41. ex-GOP | 10.04.08
Palin mainly spoke memorized talking points that did not even relate to the question posed. That’s 0 grade level to me even if it makes better soundbytes than her moronic interviews.
42. gerald bryant | 10.04.08
What’s in a word ? Joe Biden came out way ahead of hockey mom, six pak Sarah Palin. Biden has the bearing of a vice president or President of the United States of America. Sarah looks attractive but still appears to be campaigning for city council or president of your local PTA or library society. Can you imagine Ms Palin addressing United Nations or a meeting of the G8 with her golly-gees, you betcha’s and the occasional wink thrown in. Sarah is about as sophisticated as a cow moose “up north”in Alaska
43. roddy | 10.04.08
These analogies are silly, as they do not translate which candidate is more qualified to be the VP. It is clear that both candidates are clever and intelligent but in terms of broad knowledge of the issues in question Biden is more qualified. As for executive experience, obviously Palin is more experienced being the Govener of Alaska.
However, I hate to admit that as a conservative, Biden is more presidential than all of the candidates including Mccain and Obama. If it was not because of Obama’s liberal agenda, I would definitely vote for Bden as a swing republican voter. I have always admired Mccain for his love of country and his understanding of foreign policy. However, his age is of concern to me and I do not believe in the event something happens to him, Palin would be up in par with Biden to run this great nation of our.
44. Bob MacDonald | 10.04.08
Sarah Palin is the biggest non-event of the 21st century. She makes Dan Quale look like Einstein.
45. Eldora Katz | 10.04.08
Has anyone analyzed Palin’s interview with Couric for grade level.
My guess is those convoluted meanerings would rate grade 18 or higher.
46. Sarah | 10.04.08
um… nowhere in this study did they actual look at how Palin uses words incorrectly, nor did they look at mis-pronounced words or sentence structure that just didn’t make sense. I know a few toth graders and Palin is no 10th grader. Perhaps if she would have spent more time as mayor reading books instead of trying to ban books, she could complete a sentence like a regular 10th grader.— what a bogus study…..
48. jay | 10.04.08
The difference is, Biden was actually speaking. Palin was reciting the SCRIPT she was given since the day she was picked to be VP…………See the difference?………… When UNSCRIPTED, like the CBS interviews, she is useless, especially if there is a follow up question, . . . “dam those follow up questions”!…………. She is great at memorizing a script, I’ll give her that.
49. wolf | 10.04.08
First, determining the difference in a year or two of schooling is highly speculative. Second, it’s often advantageous to speak in simpler terms to people. The “smart ones” understand the simpler terms, but the “less than smart ones” may not understand complex or lofty ones.
50. Diane | 10.04.08
Readability levels do not take into account clarity, subject-verb agreement, correct grammar, appropriate use of vocabulary, etc. Readabilty formulas look at number of words, number of syllables, and the length of the sentences. A sentence could be nonsensical and still be scored. Lewis Carroll’s “Jabberwocky” could be put to a readability formula. That’s why one can listen to Palin, and think, “Word Salad!” because, although she used a many words, it doesn’t make any sense!
51. Joe | 10.04.08
This sounds like “No Child-like Mind Left Behind”.
Sarah Palin’s syntax might have been more circumscribed, as in roundabout, but it was the “bridge to nowhere” when it came to meaning.
That’s right, Virginia. One plus one equals one plus one, which of course is the total of one plus one, taken together as the sum of one and one. In other words, one plus one equals the sum of one plus one.
I thought that conservatives didn’t like grading “on a curve” ?
52. slp | 10.04.08
This assertion is ridiculous beyond belief. Sara Palin acted like she was talking to a Roper Room crowd. Sound bites like “You betcha”,”Joe Sixpack”. I can believe she was talking to grade school level. But to say that Biden was doing the same is hogwash.
53. 5am | 10.04.08
I think this headline is misleading. The whole point is to speak so the general public can understand what you’re trying to say, so lower is actually better. The CNN article noted that “Newspapers are typically written to a sixth-grade reading level.”
When I worked for the federal government, we were required to write to an eighth grade level in publicly distributed documents so the public could understand and participate in our decision making.
54. Alexander Garza | 10.04.08
Most newspapers are written at a sixth grade level, so I am not sure what is the point of this article. The highest level of writing by a major paper is the NY Times.
55. Clare P | 10.04.08
These “grade level” calculators are worse than worthless. It reads her inarticulate gibberish, her strung-together phrases that aren’t often even sentences, as “more complex” because it just counts clauses, and her word use (often choosing the wrong word entirely, or inverting the order and with it the meaning, as she has done repeatedly with her “I don’t blame the activities of man entirely on climate change”) is measured only by numbers of syllables. Her real literacy level is quite low, if you measure whether she can construct a coherent sentence or follow a consistent idea. Biden, on the other hand, appears to be penalized for speaking simply and clearly about very complex issues which he explained quite well. This is really not news, and CNN should have known better.
56. Keith H | 10.04.08
Why on earth was that stupid study done. Clearly Sarah Palin didn’t speak at a higher lever than Biden. I barely understood anything she said!
57. Eddie Zalez | 10.04.08
Don’t get fooled again… George W. Bush is an excellent example of what happens when the popular rich kid and class clown gets lucky and is elevated to President of the United States. Now, if we don’t watch it, two lucky mavericks want to try winning the tops spots. If the last eight years are not enough, maybe we should keep gambling our nation’s future while we worry how to pay for an ever-bigger deficit. For those with big egos, we are the Number One Debtor in the entire world. Thank the Republicans for it.
58. baz | 10.04.08
I suspect the study was about wishful thinking.
Whatever criteria they used, must be taken from some parallel universe, where gibberish is the native language… perhaps, the GOP Convention?
59. The Rodentman | 10.04.08
You can put lipstick on a moron and still have a moron. Palin is no more qualified and capable of being VP than I am of dancing the Swine Lake ballet with the Bolshoi.
60. Jack Charles | 10.04.08
I’m glad this reporter had fun with his Word program, but I agree with Ed Morrisey that the grade level conclusion is meaningless. Speaking more words per sentence does not negate the fact that many of Palin’s sentences are grammatical monstrosities.
61. Pearl Volkov | 10.04.08
Thank you for analyzing the grade levels for the two vice presidential candidates. Your humorous comments also helped keep my sanity.
I wonder what the ratings would be for actual responses to questions and the comprehensive material of those responses, and would the firm rating the debaters be able to figure out an intelligent analysis of such an advanced suggestion?
Also, would speaking in tongues be accepted as an appropriate language to be evaluated?
62. Terry Lopata | 10.04.08
That formula must have been developed by someone with a second grade education. I’d like to see an analysis of the debate based on sentence structure, grammar, and pronunciation. How many times did Governor Palin say “nucular” during the debate? Most of her statements were so convoluted that even if they’d contained any substance, no one would be able to figure out what it was. I did notice, however, that whenever she did have something substantive to say, she tended to speak more coherently.
63. gadjo | 10.04.08
well.. over intricate language is called ‘wooden tongue’ where i come from and some politicians can talk for hours about stuff no one understands because it simply has no meaning (and using very long words of course)
64. Lise | 10.04.08
I write patient education materials and our GOAL is to write at a LESS than 5th grade reading level so MORE PEOPLE can understand it.
It’s a good thing that the grade level was lower, means more Americans can understand it.
65. barbara shearing | 10.04.08
I am sorry but even if evaluated higher than Senator Biden, Sarah Palin is no intellectual match for him! Her run- on sentences and her skirting around the issues leave much to be desired!
66. Carol Sellers | 10.04.08
The office of vice president is not Legislative, but is Executive. The Vice President’s only official involvement with the Senate would be to vote if there were a tie. In the debate, Palin said she would be more involved in the Senate as vice president. This shows Palin does not understand the office of vice president established in the United States Constitution.
67. Ted | 10.04.08
Are you out of it? She had butchered English, sentence fragments, misuse of words, scrambled sentences–not to mention that most of her answers didn’t have anything to do with the question. What 10th grade did you guys go to? If I was a debate judge I would have given her a “barely passing.”
68. Lucile McIntyre | 10.04.08
I am so thrilled to have Sarah Palan running for office. I am a lifeline
democrat who will vote republican for the first time this year. You go
girl and be yourself. Don’t ever stoop to be like the others. We love
you because you are the original, the authentic, the honest one. Don’t
repeat yourself, just reiteratete. I’ll help in every way possible.
Lucile McIntyre
retired teacher of English, drama, speech in North Carolina.
69. Phil | 10.04.08
The interpretations are totally wrong and/or biased. The service reported that Palin used the “passive voice” much more than Biden. They also said that this is typically done to “deflect responsibility” — in other words, the more sophisticated speech reflects our ability to obfuscate / lie better the older we get. It shows Governor Palin is more manipulative and speaking in terms that distort accountability. The flag waving, and us versus them and double talk are not to her credit by any stretch. I haven’t seen this reported. At the very least, I’m surprised the media hasn’t suggested Palin may be more “elitist”.
70. Lucile McIntyre | 10.04.08
I am so thrilled to have Sarah Palan running for office. I am a lifeline
democrat who will vote republican for the first time this year. You go
girl and be yourself. Don’t ever stoop to be like the others. We love
you because you are the original, the authentic, the honest one. Don’t
repeat yourself, just reiteratete. I’ll help in every way possible.
Lucile McIntyre
retired teacher of English, drama, speech in North Carolina.
71. Michelle | 10.04.08
Palin speaks at a higher level? Well if you put Shakespearean plays into a grade level ranker, it says he writes at about the 2nd grade level on average. I’m not saying Palin is a bad speaker, I’m just saying you can’t put much stalk in what the grade level recorder says. Clearly Biden and Palin can speak and write above a 10th grade level with their educations. Also, something to note is that if you write long winded sentences with lots of commas, transitions, and clauses, the Microsoft word grade level determiner will rank you at a higher level, even if your sentence makes absolutely no sense.
72. Mike Bartlett | 10.04.08
Because the candidates were trying to “out-folksy” each other, one could argue that a lower grade level for their speech is better! To be serious, though, the grade level probably reflects how they were prepared for the debate: Biden was told to keep it short and Palin was told to learn many talking points, which she strung together into very long sentences.
73. Roger Comminger | 10.04.08
Sarah Palin’s pathetic, good-ol’-gal patois has put a previously under-represented segment of the electorate in play: the white trash vote.
74. M Cassiel | 10.04.08
When I was watching the VP debate, I was thinking that it looked like Sarah Palin was reading from cue cards or notes. Well, as is evident in this YouTube segment I received from alternet.org, it is probably true. No wonder she came across communicating at a higher grade level than Joe Biden.
http://www.alternet.org/blogs/video/101533/
75. John | 10.04.08
Doggonit! Why are we looking backwards again to make a point even. If ya gonna try to turn this debate into politics again, you should take a look to the future also. Having gone to five colleges, I know I’m five times smarter than students who can do it one time only.
76. Barbara Verrier | 10.04.08
As someone with an IQ of 131, and quite well read, I need to ask - is this whole article some kind of joke??????? It contradicts itself over and over again.
77. John P | 10.04.08
Palin’s lies & sins are not justified. She is an empty tool of the ultra rich. Get some common sense, get out of your trance, be an American and cast away this parasite.
78. patmac | 10.04.08
Bertrand Russell and Hemingway were both brilliant thinkers. Both used very simple sentences. Contrary to myth, “using many words” is neither necessary nor sufficient for indicating clarity of thought. Confused writers/speakers often use complex sentences. Why? Because they don’t really understand what they are saying. Notice this does not mean that only confused thinkers employ complex sentences. (Kant and Lincoln were, like Russell and Hemingway, brilliant.) Nor does it mean that simple sentences indicate intelligence. It means only that the metric employed is nonsense.
79. Susan A. | 10.04.08
This is a complete farce! You can run a readability check on text and get a Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level in Microsoft Word when you do a spell check. (Just go into the preference section and check the readability box under grammar.) I took Palin’s sentence, which did indeed rate at 18.3 It rated that because it was a long, rambling sentence. I changed the sentence from:
What I would do, also, if that were ever to happen, though, is to continue the good work he is so committed to of putting government back on the side of the people and get rid of the greed and corruption on Wall Street and in Washington.
to:
What I would do, also, if that were ever to happen, though, is to continue the good work he is so committed to of putting government back on the side of the people. I would also get rid of the greed and corruption on Wall Street and in Washington.
The second sentence rates at a 9.6 grade level.
Maybe it takes someone with a doctorate to wade through the mess of her sentence construction!
By the way, I use the readability scale when I am writing to bring down the grade level of my writing. It helps me write cleaner sentences!
The Flesch-Kincaid score on this message is 8.2!
80. James | 10.04.08
I must say that this article is pathetic; with all the important issues floating out there a study was made to see how many words in a sentence or how many letters in a word.
I’ll tell you what worries me: A president that naively believes he can negotiate with terrorists, a president that has changed his position from left field at the beginning of the primaries to center field as he think fit for his own benefit, a guy whose only goal is to be president and will say and do whatever it takes to get there.
Obama has no experience in many important areas, but less of all in foreign affairs. Russia recently announced that will assist Venezuela attain nuclear power, will engage in joint exercises with Venezuelan warships in the Atlantic Ocean, and that will implement a joint space program with Cuba. Do the aforementioned remind you of the missile crises?
Like Obama, JFK was charismatic, young, eloquent, and INEXPERIENCED; that is why the Russians played him like a piano and we had to let Castro reign over Cuba all these years. We now have Chavez and few other Castro wannabes; do you really think Obama is up to the job?… I KNOW I’LL SLEEP BETTER WITH MCCAIN AT THE HELM.
81. Web Smith | 10.04.08
Here’s Piper Palin making her mother’s words more clear. http://ewebsmith.com/Pictures/piperpalin
Are you sure that you want whatever is going on in that family going on in the White House?
82. jay | 10.04.08
If I were the company putting out these ratings I’d be careful. Their rating of Palin just shows how useless their analysis is. Biden is obviously leagues ahead of the average Palin.
83. hewhoasks | 10.04.08
Does anyone recall this sentence:
“I had one grunch but the eggplant over there”?
What grade level is that?
OK, I realize: too short a sample.
84. Joe | 10.04.08
One thing the language monitoring service left out about Palin,she speaks with forked tongue.
For Bush who only had a 7th grade level.
The image has given rise to the expression “to speak with a forked tongue”, meaning to say one thing and mean another or, in more general terms, to act in a duplicitous manner. Seems like the Republicans have been doing a lot of that lately.
85. Jessica | 10.04.08
Palin spoke in political platitudes with over enthusiastic , cheer leader mentality, HYPE !
Everything she said was hollow in substance, and not once did she give any impression that there were actually any proposed methods that McCain was going to apply to the changes she was amplifying.
Obama lays out specific measures that are applicable to his change policy, but Palin & McCain just keep on making bets on the stupidity of the American Mentality, hoping they can say whatever they want, with absolutely no credibility. It’s obvious why the republican’s don;t back education; They rely on ignorance to promote their facade.
WE WONT GET FOOLED AGAIN. Especially by a beauty masked barracuta , who sounds like a helium balloon addict, addressing a convention of babbie doll sensationalists ! No Thanks !
86. Noo-clee-er | 10.04.08
am i the only one who noticed the repeated “NOO-CUE-LER”s coming from Palin???
87. KS2 Problema | 10.04.08
Many years ago, I used to feel flattered by the “grade level” a certain piece of analysis software indicated I wrote at — until I did a little research and found out that it merely rated the complexity of sentence structure — NOT the quality, intelligence — or intelligibility — of the writing.
When I re-read that mind-twisting quote from Palin’s debate performance, it became instantly clear that this analysis had, at its root, the same paltry and superficial analytical methodology.
88. dude | 10.04.08
Palin speaks at a higher level than Joe Biden? Did the person who wrote this article watch the interview? She often messes up even simple sentence structure. 9th graders don’t use “doggonnit” and “you betcha” and “say it ain’t so” in their term papers unless they want a D. She’s a well tutored moron who sometimes get her recitation of sound bites right. Give me a break. In my best 8th grader “OMG, she is sooooo pathetic”
89. devere | 10.04.08
How embarrassing to Palin - either the script writer’s wrote poorly or she strove too high and was out Joe Six Packed by Biden.
90. Barrie O. Ward The Canadian Geezer | 10.04.08
The very inclusion of the “Grade Level” story within CNN reports does a disservice to public education not to mention the complete dearth of reality that was given as results and explanations by the “language Monitoring Service” that avowed to have ‘Graded’ with some purpose other than self-promotion.
The truth is oft found by way of the use of the eye and ear and an honest measurement of the intellects involved in the debate quickly revealed a man of even disposition with an awareness of the nuance of language and a kindly disposition who was through no fault of his own forced to share a public appearance with garrulous, winking and pointing strumpet of the type that many of us were warned about when we read the Book Of Proverbs.
91. Chuck | 10.04.08
So, the writer stated : “This analysis just shows that Palin used a somewhat higher ratio in this calculation than Biden. That doesn’t necessarily make her a better communicator, not even if people ignore content altogether.”
It is not only if people ignore her, but if they don’t know what the heck she really meant.
Both Biden and Palin were guilty of repetition, too. Remember, repetition of a statement does not make it clearer.
92. Gerard | 10.04.08
Palin talked more about “the state of Alaska” than the Unided Sates of America
Isn’t she running for vice president of the USA?
Not being Amercan or even residing there, I find that very strange.
As my teachers used to say: “out of the subject”
Biden at least talked about the USA.
93. Paul Stewart | 10.04.08
My own perception is the opposite. That Biden spoke at the higher grade level. But you know what, it is better to speak at grade 8 level if you are connecting with the blue collar workers.
I think the key point is not the level of the words. I mean even Palin probably know supercalifragilisticexpialidoshous…. What matters is coherence and articulation. How those words are, or in Palin’s case, are not put together.
I believe that Palin lost this debate whatever level words she was trying to use. And whatever language she was trying to speak. And who ever she was winking at.
I think Gov. Palin really did not belong on the same stage as Joe Biden. Anyone who didn’t see that wasn’t looking very closely or was looking through rose-colored glasses. Or maybe they forgot to put their glasses on.
And a knowledgeable person or voter with a reasonably good judgment of people would know that Joe Biden understands what he is talking about and what he’s doing. I think he has almost specifically been trained for the dual crises that America faces today — foreign policy [including Iraq, Afghanistan, Iran, North Korea, Venezuela, etc.] and the financial and economic crisis.
That same person would also see that Gov. Palin does not have a clue. What she did say was simply a “speech” of the talking points. That is why it was so necessary for her to say that she was going to say whatever she wanted regardless of the question — she doesn’t know the answer to the questions. This is not rocket science, nor does it take a psychoanalyst to figure this out about Gov. Palin -it is right in plain sight in front of our noses to see.
Joe Biden looked presidential — Gov. Palin looked unsuited, indeed, unqualified, for the job of governor of Alaska. For those who are getting excited about this “maverick” from Alaska — try very carefully and sensibly to imagine this woman as President of the United States at any time over the next four years.
And then imagine it could be from day one. McCain as we all know has 1 foot in the grave already — he is 72 years old and has had recurring cancer. And some may criticize that comment — but I think it is important to understand this.
Leaving aside the risk of being President itself, which attracts the attention of many nut cases — the natural probabilities for McCain to die in office are very high certainly higher than most anyone else. The last one elected at this age for the first time died within a couple of months of gaining office.
So, I would encourage you all to consider reality — get your head out of the Rabbit Hole or the ostrich hole. Governor Palin may be a natural politician for the town of Wassilla and she might even just barely be qualified to be governor of Alaska. However, by no stretch of the imagination of any right-thinking person is she qualified for the Vice Presidency where Sen. McCain is President.
I’m sorry but those are the facts — we all need to face them.
94. ssjackson | 10.04.08
So many comments have been made about the Couric interview disaster. The disaster was Couric. Her bias was so obvious I was embarrassed for her..not Palin. Couric was biased to the point of…jealousy.
Her questions were simply irrelevant..she wanted Palin to speak against Roe v. Wade by leading Palin into Supreme Court memory contests. Palin stumbled as any of us would if faced with a (Couric) with manipulation on her mind.
Palin is a governor…not stupid…not knowledgeable in all areas, but smart enough to recognize a jealous interviewer…even if she didn’t disarm (Couric)flawlessly.
ssj.
96. James | 10.04.08
Obviously the context and meaning of what they said were not factored in. How about some grading? I give Biden a B, for giving in to the dumbed-down system, but extra points for putting up with Palin in a classy manner. Palin gets an F for showing up for the debate then not debating or answering the questions asked.
97. irspariah | 10.04.08
What a bunch of hogwash!. Does anyone care to analyze what is being said, rather than the form it comes in?
98. McCain is a liar | 10.04.08
Setting aside the fact that almost all of Palin’s answers were stock answers read from note cards, what this study shows is that Biden was speaking in a way that was more easily understood by more Americans. Joe Biden is a fighter for main stream America. Despite being highly intelligent, he’s used to talking with the average American, because that’s what he does. That’s who he spends his time with.
99. Fred Ashley | 10.04.08
You betcha! That Sarah Palin, she’s way smarter, and a better talker also, doggonit, than that Joe Biden fella.
100. almeino | 10.04.08
Doesn’t anybody see the clear flaw in this? They’re grading spoken words with a device used for evaluating written words (Flesch-Kincaid is a readability test). Given that Palin looked at her copious notes before (and while) talking, it has to dawn on people that this is a totally ridiculous evaluation. And don’t forget that she was coached before the debate, so obviously her answers would be more structured as if they were written down rather than come off extemporaneously. The whole thing is also counter to what Palin was trying to do, because she was trying to reach ‘Joe Six-Pack’, right?!?! (BTW, the Flesch-Kincaid of the CSM article is 7.7)
101. Ernest Partridge | 10.04.08
Read Strunk and White’s definitive “Elements of Style.” Their advice, one might conclude from Flesch-Kincaid metric, is “dumb-down.” Specificaly, S&W suggest: When possible, use simple rather than complex sentences, anglo-saxon rather than latinate words, and avoid long paragraphs.
That’s not “dumbing-down.” It is simply superior writing and speaking style.
You betcha!
103. Mauri Mollan | 10.04.08
Did you check out “language monitoring service”, what is this, I’ve never heard of it and I am mistrustful of it until there is verifiable evidence that it is a real entity and not some spur of the moment creation by a biased group. Content, depth and delivery are the issues and Biden was way ahead of Ms. Palin.
104. IC | 10.04.08
I guess if we apply the ‘grading’ method of the CNN article to the Couric interview, it might conclude that Palin spoke at the umpteenth Grade level.
Incoherence —- translates into —-> higher Grade. Shewwcheeetttt… *wink*
105. wordvarc | 10.04.08
Biden was successful at “dumbing down” his presentation.
Palin was reaching.
106. Matt | 10.04.08
“Grade level” means what grade level you need to be to understand the statement, not to make it. Long sentences with long words tend to be more difficult to parse. I’d argue that given a choice between 6th “grade level” sentences and 10th with the exact same information content, the 6th are generally the better choice. Not sure about 6th vs. 3rd, as when you go too low, your sentences can make you sound a bit too simplistic.
107. MrPete | 10.04.08
It’s saddening to read the comments here. So many assume Biden was articulate and factual… simply because he *sounded* articulate and factual.
In reality, Biden’s responses were full of terrible mistakes and falsehoods. But the commenters here don’t have enough background to know that.
Just one example to get you started. Go read up on Lebanon; Biden (the supposed foreign policy expert) doesn’t have a clue.
So which is worse: that the supposed expert on foreign policy gets basic facts wrong, or that a newcomer who is coming up to speed gets a few things wrong?
I’ll take the humble learner over the arrogant know-it-all any day of the week.
108. MSN | 10.04.08
P. Stewart,
A few points:
1. If Biden is uniquely qualified based on your assesment so is McCain. Both are heavy on foreign policy but light on economics. Biden has never been an economic heavy weight(he voted against the Alaska pipeline as an example). In fact no one in this election is an economic heavy weight at all. Problem with Biden is his foreign policy stances have drifted with the political wind. No to Gulf War 1, then for years said Iraq was an imminent threat to US, so voted for Gulf War 2, then when that looked bad, voted against surge, all the while calling for the US(yes this country) to break Iraq up into 3 separate countries…his foreign policy blunders and waffling are atrocious.
2. The last President to attain office at this age was Reagan…he did not die in office…I do not know who you are referring to…but obviously since you did not give a name of the President you are no sure either of your point.
3. People need to get off this idea that McCain is going to die. The President is in constant danger for their life no matter who they are…all I care about is who has the knowledge and experience to lead as President from day one…I am looking for that candidate…unfortunately for most of us…the media has done such a poor job of vetting the Democratic ticket and their stances/associations/gaffes/illegal activity(i.e Biden and his son being investigated for illegal activity in setting up a hedge fund) while it spends an inordinate amount of time criticizing everything McCain/Plain does…that we haven’t been given the complete story to make a truly informed decision…
109. WhatWasSaid | 10.05.08
There is another side… (if there was a problem). A high probability that there is a supreme need to bash, and less reason to comprehend? Also, it could be as simple as, you just have a low score in comprehension. One that may not do so well to adapt to the world outside your own bean.
110. just great | 10.05.08
I am glad that I understood the debate. I hope the soldiers in Iraq were tuned in…
Most of the time Democrates make a point to protect the people and it doesn’t take a college degree to see that the Republicans have not changed…
America needs to get it together $$$
Bush must go, I think he must be one of the worst Presidents, ever.
Why don’t we find a way to create iceburgs, or at least a way to structurally maintain the ones that we have with something that would be cool. There goes my 5th grade coming out of me again.
Better get back to inventing stuff….
111. Bill Clark | 10.05.08
All the above comments have reinforced what I believe that the average American is sick and tired of how politicians are so condescending to the “folks”. All the comments, including the analysis of the debaters’ speaking ability, convinced me that the “learned” ones must be trounced this election cycle. Gov. Palin pushes Sen. McCain to a higher level that this country’s leaders needed so badly to reach (if service to their constituency was paramount). If my level of communicating is 1st grade to you, so be it.The “folks” deserve it so that this country can remove the cancer.
112. poggi11 | 10.05.08
I don’t know how a lot of people in this forum can be so critical of the candidates’ speaking style, English grammar and all that, when they can’t even check their own misspellings and grammars themseles. I read through the comments in this forum. Even though English is not my mother language, I could see quite a bit of mistakes too. There is quite a bunch of hypocrites here who could extravagantly critique but not see the soot in their own faces.
113. HeathPel | 10.05.08
To say that the Couric interview was biased out of jealousy is insane!!! The media has been covering every inaudible phrase that this fool utters and yet we don’t here the media demanding an answer as too why she isn’t testifying in her trooper scandle. Couric wouldn’t stoop to such shamfull tactics for press and advancement of career because she is a real women with intelligence and class. Palin, with her trashy wink…wink, made afool of herself!!! The women that say they want to vote for her are doing women a hugh disservice by advancing such juvenile tactics to promate yourself and your agenda. PLEASE have more respect for women and the advancement of the cause of womanhood to reconsider and vote the Democratic ticket who understands the views of women and arent just using them for votes. We are all God’s children not just the Republicans!!!!!
114. T-Prop | 10.05.08
Hmmmm.
It is of interest that - considering she spoke with such obvious greater intellectual sophistication - Sarah did not decisively “win” this debate (according to polls).
(Of course, the polls and press are all pinko commie liberal tools. It’s a Plot.)
115. Shane | 10.05.08
I’m a democrat who is sick of the bash Palin mentality. Tonight SNL threw a zing at Palin’s pregnant teenage daughter. I find that disgusting. Anyone who watched the Couric mess could spot the anti Palin tone. Fair is fair and even my most liberal friends no longer deny that the media thinks like they do.
Personally I’m a democrat who wonders why my party has stopped talking about Harry Truman. Any further left and I may register as an independent.
116. cmsix | 10.05.08
I’m not surprised she scored higher and the reason is simple. When Joe Biden was going through material to plagiarise he simply chose things with smaller words.
Even though she’s an obvious idiot Sarah Palin hasn’t been caught stealing other people’s intellectual property and using it as if it were her own.
Oh, had you forgotten Joe Biden was nearly thrown out of law school for plagiarism and was only saved by profound begging which showed he’d probably make an excellent lawyer afterall. Not to mention his 1988 presidential nomination try where he was caught red handed giving a speech already written and given by a UK politician.
Don’t believe me? Google “biden plagiarism” and read it for yourself.
cmsix
117. Josh | 10.05.08
I did look it up…
http://www.languagemonitor.com/
The statistical breakdown follows.
McCain Obama
Sentences per paragraph 2.2 2.1
Words per sentence 15.9 17.4
Characters per word 4.4 4.3
Passive voice 5% 5%
Ease of Reading (100 Top) 63.7 66.8
Grade Level 8.3 8.2
Number of words (approximate) 7,150 8,068
Obama and McSame tied in grade level. You were wrong my friend. I am an Obama supporter and I found it offensive that you would manufacture falsehoods in the hopes that people would actually believe that McCain spoke at a 3rd grade level. Those are the kind of tactics McSame’s campaign is eliciting.
118. John | 10.05.08
Writing is the process of structuring ideas on paper.
When has Palin had an idea? If so, where is it.
18.3 grade level? Sure!!!!
119. Scotty | 10.05.08
Gerard @ 93 said: “Palin talked more about “the state of Alaska” than the Unided Sates of America
Isn’t she running for vice president of the USA?”
Indeed Gerard. And her folksy call out JUST for 3rd graders at Gladys Wood Elementary School in ANCHORAGE was entirely inappropriate for a serious VP debate. That sait, it would have been a wee bit fairer had she included all AMERICAN 3rd graders, not just her hometown pals.
120. Paul Stewart | 10.05.08
In reply to “109. MSN | 10.04.08
P. Stewart,
A few points:
1. If Biden is uniquely qualified based on your assesment so is McCain. Both are heavy on foreign policy but light on economics. Biden has never been an economic heavy weight(he voted against the Alaska pipeline as an example). In fact no one in this election is an economic heavy weight at all. Problem with Biden is his foreign policy stances have drifted with the political wind. No to Gulf War 1, then for years said Iraq was an imminent threat to US, so voted for Gulf War 2, then when that looked bad, voted against surge, all the while calling for the US(yes this country) to break Iraq up into 3 separate countries…his foreign policy blunders and waffling are atrocious.
2. The last President to attain office at this age was Reagan…he did not die in office…I do not know who you are referring to…but obviously since you did not give a name of the President you are no sure either of your point.
3. People need to get off this idea that McCain is going to die. The President is in constant danger for their life no matter who they are…all I care about is who has the knowledge and experience to lead as President from day one…I am looking for that candidate…unfortunately for most of us…the media has done such a poor job of vetting the Democratic ticket and their stances/associations/gaffes/illegal activity(i.e Biden and his son being investigated for illegal activity in setting up a hedge fund) while it spends an inordinate amount of time criticizing everything McCain/Plain does…that we haven’t been given the complete story to make a truly informed decision…”
On your point 1. Well, no what I said is true. The first one elected at that age died a few months into office. That was not Ronald Reagan obviously. Reagan was re-elected at an older age. It was William Henry Harrison, the 9th President. He was elected at age 69 and died 31 days into office. Look it up. Now, neither Reagan or Harrison had health issues before. McCain has serious health issues - skin cancer that has recurred and he has been physically mauled as a POW. While we all admire his heroism as a POW. It still leaves him with the physical and mental issues that derive from that.
On your point 2. I concede that McCain would indeed compete with Biden as VP. He is not Presidential material in my view. He does not have the right temperament or policies. He has the wrong VP to backstop him. He is too much politics and not enough Country First. His sole purpose in picking Palin was politics. His sole purpose in “suspending” his campaign are political.
Your point 3. I agree with your comment “all I care about is who has the knowledge and experience to lead as President from day one”. Even if you accept that McCain has the right temperament and the right policies for America, if elected - and somehow he died, for whatever reason and the probabilities are over 25% without factoring the cancer risk, which is very high given he has recurring skin cancer. That leaves you with someone who is eminently unqualified and unfit to lead - Palin.
You need to get your facts straight. And you are entitled to your opinion. So am I>
121. Robby | 10.05.08
I’m not sure what debate you watched, but what grade level do the words, “gosh darn it, you betcha, golly and bless your heart” fit in? How about 2nd grade? The Monitor is written for an 8th grade reading level right? My suggestion is that if Ms. Palin wants to bone up on her “one-worders” she should watch the movie “The Best Years if Our Lives” and add the word “swell” to her vocabulary.
122. Gentle Reader | 10.05.08
“You gotcha”, “By Golly”, “Joe Six Pack”, “Dog-gone-it”, “Pit bull with lipstick”, “Yabetcha”, “Russia and Canada are IN THE STATE OF WHICH I AM THE EXECUTIVE OF”, these quotes are brilliantly spoken as if she went to some grade school of her own making. God help us all!
123. franglais | 10.05.08
treetracker says: “…businesses require their employees to communicate with their customers at a 6th grade reading level…”
And speaking of businesses, employees, and clients:
I wouldn’t want my employees winking and giving “youbetcha!” type answers to their clients. Imagine Palin at trade talks with Gordon Brown or Mr Hu and winking and talking to them as if they were at a pie eating contest at the county fair? Her demeanor may be charming, but far from professional.
And I like to think that Joe Six Pack knows that, too.
124. franglais | 10.05.08
treetracker says: “…businesses require their employees to communicate with their customers at a 6th grade reading level…”
And speaking of businesses, employees, and clients:
I wouldn’t want my employees winking and giving “youbetcha!” type answers to their clients. Imagine Palin at trade talks with Gordon Brown or Mr Hu and winking and talking to them as if they were at a pie eating contest at the county fair? Her demeanor may be charming, but far from professional.
And I like to think that Joe Six Pack knows that, too.
125. doclil | 10.05.08
This article is ridiculous! I am a psychologist, and I found the data useless.
Honestly, comprehension is the essence of a good speech. Did it mean anything? Did the speaker convey his thoughts and make people think about what is being communicated?
I have a Ph.D. and speak to my clients using their level of understanding, what good is it if I speak “Doctor talk” and they are not understanding my message? I convey the idea in ways they can understand, derive meaning, and experience symptom relief.
This brings me to my point: Although Palin was well coached, she said, NOTHING. I was not moved, I was not convinced, I thought she seemed plastic.
Biden moved me. I found answers, I felt compassion and humanity from him, I felt connection.
I say: trust your gut.
I also cannot believe how insensitive Palin was after Biden discussed the death of his wife and child, and Palin ignored that whole segment and continued debate talking about superficial tangential matters. Not only was that rude, but very unempathic, and lacking in depth as a human being. Cold callous and sticking to her list of well coached answers.
Obama/Biden, these guys have it down: compassion, intelligence, knowledge, and depth of this political knowledge (Biden brings experience to the team).
this is a great team!
OBAMA 08.
126. martinchill | 10.05.08
she spoke in complete sentences, but she didn’t say anything.
~~
i honestly thought this article was satire. “the firm graded the following sentence at the 15th grade level” ?
127. trainman | 10.05.08
We need to s**** the whole No Child Left Behind **** and just teach our children how to read, write, and say “golly”, “gee”, and “gosh darn”. Throw in a little winking from time to time, and we’ll zoom right past those twenty five countries ahead of us in reading in no time.
128. Lorax | 10.05.08
But is she smarter than a fifth grader? I want to see an analysis on that. I’ll have my son do the analysis, he’s in kindergarten and he’s able to complete entire sentances AND ANSWER QUESTIONS. And he’s traveled out of the country so he’s got foreign policy down. Oh yeah, and he’s good about saving his money and wise in spending (if the Pokemon card costs $4 I will still have $11, it’s a good deal), so he’s ready to deal with a financial crisis. OMG, if not for the age requirement he could run for VP. I will have him practice his winking, you betchas, gosh darnits, and the condescending look/tone.
129. Solyd | 10.05.08
Sarah has really struck a chord in the liberal left. They are afraid, very afraid. They have never seen the likes of this woman. As the days go on, the black liberation theology beliefs of Obama will come closer and closer to the surface and interject themselves into the root of discourse. This historic race has become far more historic with the countenance of Sarah Palin splashed across the screens of America’s televisions. The media has done their best to slander her and to unseat her base. Like and injured and cornered animal, they will become more viscious as days go on and the election day approaches. America cannot allow the Sultan of Socialism to become our next president. If this occurs, then the ultimate age of inequality will begin. The age in which anyone that disagrees with the Sultan’s policies will be vilified as a warmonger and hatemonger. God forbid, that this nation standup for what is right and defend itself, that is not allowed, that is “warmongering.”
Oh how the mighty have fallen.
130. Solyd | 10.05.08
Are you sure this is the “Christian Science Monitor?” Not Pravda? This article and most of it’s blogosphere respondents are completely detached from reality and are obviously sick of losing to the GOP on every major issue that stands.
I just heard an absurd interjection on the news by Obama surrogate Karen Finney, indicating that 95% of Americans would get a tax break if Obama was president and all would be well. HELLO! Is anyone home, its not the tax structure that precipitated the current market conditions, its the collapse of the lending instruments for vastly undervalued, high risk homeowners and their properties. I love it when liberals try to blame “trickle down” economics on the current situation.
It’s the REVERSE! It’s not the wealthy that caused this, its corrupt lending practices to high risk intruments.
UNREAL!
131. Gwen | 10.05.08
Well, Sarah Palin spoke at an 8th grade level. As my 13 year old daugher so accurately pointed out, all she kept hearing was, “As governor of Alaska” over and over and over again.
I wonder how many compositional points she would get for reusing (ad naseum) the word Maverick. The National Beef council should be taking umbrage as it makes “It’s What’s for dinner” smell like mud.
132. F Armstrong | 10.05.08
This article is misleading: it doesn’t tell us that the way grade-level reading studies are done is by counting syllables and dividing them by the number of words. So, for example, everytime Palin throws in an “also” she gets credit for extra syllables. “Maverick” gives her the same boost. There is nothing sophisticated or educated in her speech patterns. She memorized a bunch of words and jumbled them together into virtual nonsense.
133. A | 10.05.08
Palin is a Barbie doll, just wind her up, and she begins speaking, fast and
furious, so that she doesn’t forget her lines. She stinks, and she will stink
as a VP or God forbid a President. Lord help us.
135. Paul Stewart | 10.05.08
To Solyd who posted this rather soyld piece:
“Sarah has really struck a chord in the liberal left. They are afraid, very afraid. They have never seen the likes of this woman. As the days go on, the black liberation theology beliefs of Obama will come closer and closer to the surface and interject themselves into the root of discourse. This historic race has become far more historic with the countenance of Sarah Palin splashed across the screens of America’s televisions. The media has done their best to slander her and to unseat her base. Like and injured and cornered animal, they will become more viscious as days go on and the election day approaches. America cannot allow the Sultan of Socialism to become our next president. If this occurs, then the ultimate age of inequality will begin. The age in which anyone that disagrees with the Sultan’s policies will be vilified as a warmonger and hatemonger. God forbid, that this nation standup for what is right and defend itself, that is not allowed, that is “warmongering.”
Oh how the mighty have fallen.”
Okay, let’s start with leaving God out of this. He is on everyone’s side - okay? Second, I would rephrase your lead in to - “Sarah has really struck a chord with Americans. They are afraid, very afraid. They have never seen the likes of this woman.”
The blather about Obama and his religion is (i) wrong, and (ii) irrelevant in any event. An the cant about Obama as being a socialist is nonsense. What is clear is that Obama has struck a chord on the right. They are not afraid, but they know when they are going to lose and they don’t like it - oh how the right has fallen. Why? - because the right has been wrong….
136. Lorax | 10.05.08
To Paul Stewart above, bravo. God is here to represent us all, why drag God into this. Oh, plus separation of church and State…
To Solyd: in reference to “Sarah has really struck a chord in the liberal left”. No. I am neither, but I am a female single mom. She does not in any way represent me, and sadly we come in great numbers. No, we have never seen the likes of her, in the fact of her blatant disregard of answering questions, showing respect, and of her insinuating we are all Joe Six Pack. I don’t drink a six pack, probably some do. I am not a hockey mom, my kids prefer chess and lacrosse. I am not trying to make it seem as though I’d say I’d run for a demanding job while having kids because we all know at some point you get to where you pay to have your kids taken care of, especially as as single mom. I have actualy turned down opportunities because they’d leave me to hired help for my kids and I think I am best with them, not just paying to have them kept watched legally.
I don’t rely on my God or a wink to get me through, I depend on my sound judgement and respect for others to guide me. I’d never set women back to further myself, nor would I leave my kids in someone else’s hands. Is this sexist? No, this is the right for me to choose who takes care os my kids ans makes my choices. I rather it be me. If you’d like to make me seem bad for this, have your field day. But I am living it, not talking it. Biden has been in my shoes, but I respect him for more than that. Go on and see things the way you want, and I get to do my things my way… which in Sarah’s words, are not :scary things”. i feel empowered to make my own, and my kids future choices. And I think i am doing right. See me in 20 years and ask me if I screwed up then. But of the importance to this, I don’t think I will tell you different. But if i am wrong, you take my kids on yourself and tell me later you did better. I am making a chouce for their futures. Obama/Biden.
137. whynot | 10.05.08
Palin talks about Obama - does she even realize she might be the only VP candidate to be indicted? Based on what I have seen - she doesn’t have a clue….
138. Roy Crawford | 10.06.08
Palin was speaking at a higher level and Biden at a lower one because Palin was trying to win over some Democrats while Biden was trying to win over some Republicans.
139. Kyle | 10.09.08
The article was unclear. Those two gibberish sentences didn’t score at 18.3 and 15th grade levels. That’s what they scored on the Ease of Reading scale (100 being the best score). In other words those were their two lowest scoring sentences. At least, that’s what I’m assuming.
Trackbacks/Pingbacks
Leave a Comment
We do not publish all comments, and we do not publish comments immediately. The comments feature is a forum to discuss the ideas in our stories. Constructive debate - even pointed disagreement - is welcome, but personal attacks on other commenters are not, and will not be published.
Tip: Do not write a novel. Keep it short. We will not publish lengthy comments. Come up with your own statements. This is not a place to cut and paste an email you received. If we recognize it as such, we won't post it.
Please do not post any comments that are commercial in nature or that violate copyrights.
Finally, we will not publish any comments that we regard as obscene, defamatory, or intended to incite violence.
Jimmy Orr has worked in politics for the majority of his professional career working for two U.S. Senators, two Governors and one President. Most recently, Orr served as White House Spokesman and Internet Director for President George W. Bush and Special Advisor to Governor Schwarzenegger for Internet Communications.
David Cook is Washington bureau chief of The Christian Science Monitor and host of the Monitor's newsmaker breakfasts. He was the Monitor's editor from 1994 to 2001. Cook is a graduate of Principia College, served in the U.S. Army, was a Bagehot Fellow at Columbia University, and is a member of the Gridiron Club, Washington's oldest journalistic organization.
1. richard | 10.04.08
This article is misleading. If you want to report what the ENTIRE study shows, then report what Obama and McCain scored.
According to this study, Obama ranked just above a 9th grade level, and McCain ranked just above a 3rd grade level.
Look it up.