In shadow of 2000, networks hesitate to call election
Submitted on November 3, 2004 - 1:00am.
Chris Otts - Fall 2004
WASHINGTON – Four years ago, Americans stayed up all night because the television networks were too rash in calling the presidential election.
They stayed up late again Tuesday, this time because the networks were reluctant to make calls.
News anchors trudged through predictions Tuesday night, careful not to make any prematurely. President Bush led throughout the night, but anchors cautioned that until enough data was available in battleground states, it was anybody's race.
It wasn't until 11:40 p.m. that Bush had a clear advantage. That's when ABC called Florida for Bush, with CBS following five minutes later. The other networks maintained that Florida was too close to call until after midnight.
They stayed up late again Tuesday, this time because the networks were reluctant to make calls.
News anchors trudged through predictions Tuesday night, careful not to make any prematurely. President Bush led throughout the night, but anchors cautioned that until enough data was available in battleground states, it was anybody's race.
It wasn't until 11:40 p.m. that Bush had a clear advantage. That's when ABC called Florida for Bush, with CBS following five minutes later. The other networks maintained that Florida was too close to call until after midnight.
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