america's sweetheart

A History of Sarah Palin Complaining About ‘Gotcha Questions’

Falling prey to a gotcha question — a query posed by a member of the media in an effort to coax a person into looking stupid or saying something damaging — is a fear shared by every politician. When it does happen, they are often quick to blame their boneheaded remarks not on themselves, but on the inherently deceitful nature of the gotcha question itself. “If only this question had been posed differently, I would have provided the most accurate, comprehensive, and socially acceptable response man has ever known,” they seem to contend. It’s a time-honored damage-control strategy employed by Sarah Palin more often than probably anyone else — not only in her own defense, but also in the defense of other Republicans. But how gotcha-esque were these questions, really? Let’s take a look.

A History of Sarah Palin Complaining About ‘Gotcha Questions’