States called
Alex Granados
Nov 04, 2008

As I sat writing the last post, a voice started shouting across the newsroom about all of these states that were being called.

CNN is calling a win for Obama in Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey and Washington. They are calling Oklahoma, South Carolina and Tennessee for John McCain.

That makes the score 77 to 34, advantage Obama.

Once again, it takes 270 electoral votes for someone to be declared the presidential victor, so there is still a ways to go.

In a previous era, the newsroom would probably consist of a group of people sitting around the television, learning about the election as a team. However, in the modern newsroom, with Internet capabilities and a computer for every member, we are all in our own worlds of information.

Depending on our preference, we might be looking at CNN, msnbc, Fox News, or any number of other sites to get our information. But, when the numbers come in, they are definitely being shouted across the newsroom. There is a feeling in the air that each state, each number, has a greater significance than in elections of the past. Each result represents a verdict about the future… a hope or a fear. The feeling behind the words depends on the person and their own expectations.