If you want to watch the Republican Convention instead of the talking heads watch it on C-SPAN. They do lots of crowd shots but you hear EVERY speaker from the podium and see all the videos and all the music and entertainment. I don't want a "news" director deciding what I get to watch.
While the Convention is in session I keep my big screen on C-SPAN and turn the small TV to Fox News and check out CNN from time to time. That way I can keep up on braking news or watch a political analyst I respect. Before and after the Convention sessions I turn one TV to Fox News and one to CNN. I also monitor twitter on my iPad . It's like being in a room with a lot of political junkies giving me instant comments on what is happening at the podium and elsewhere.
I firmly believe that the hurricane in the gulf has increased those who are watching the Republican Convention. Many non political junkies love to watch weather catastrophes and as a result are watching the cable news outlets. The same kind of people who watch car racing waiting for a car crash turn to cable news when a major weather event occurs, be it flood, earthquake or hurricane. The same impulse that leads people to drive by a house fire or a car wreck etc.
The hurricane has also added a sense of drama and danger to the Convention. Most "drama" at political conventions is good for viewership but bad for the political party holding the convention. However, hurricane's are not Republican or Democrat and so it adds drama and viewership without the political downside.
