Yes. I think that for the people that are on the fence these types of errors can be persuasive. I would hope that most people would first do some research rather then decide their vote based on some error like this. Makes you wonder though... was it really a mistake? You have to wonder sometimes with these News stations especially the leaders like CNN, who are they backing politically?

CNN and MSNBC are in love with our new messiah

I think some people are ununformed and will honestly link Osama and Obama. It also doesn't help that Obama's middle name is Hussein and that his father was Muslim. But those things won't make a difference to informed voters.

I think these slip-ups definitely hurt his public perception. There are still a lot of people that think he is Muslim and was sworn in on a Koran and won't listen to anyone say otherwise.

To be honest, I've been in a conversation talking about Obama and I've accidentally said Osama. I mean, come on, the names are very similar AND all we've heard about the past seven years is Osama...

Well... I *hope* it's hurting his chances, but it probably isn't.

I think it's foul when they try to mix his name up on purpose. Barack Obama is a great man that doesn't deserve all that rudeness.

I don't really think this is going to make that much of a difference, and I also don't think these mistakes were made on purpose or with ill-will. Like Syako said, it's easy to slip up and switch around one letter in a name. And I have been watching the news countless times and seen the wrong footage accidentally displayed in the corner.

I hope not! I hope people know the difference...

I watched a clip on You Tube where a reporter asked a man who he thought was more dangerous out of Osama bin Laden, Yusuf Islam and Barack Obama, I think it was...The man said "Probably Obama"

It just shows how ignorant a lot of people are when they confuse they world's most wanted man with someone who could run their country, even if the names are similar. People need to catch a clue.

Having worked in a fast-paced news organization, I have to say that I think it's an honest mistake that the names were mixed up. If anything, I say it's the credibility of the news organization that suffers, not the candidate.

As for the middle name thing...as long as Hillary's middle name is also being used, then I don't see what the big deal is - it is his middle name after all!

The other day one of my sort-of-friends growing up sent out a mass email to everyone on his contacts list, the gist of which was "How could any sane American vote for a man named Barack HUSSEIN Obama?". (He's a rabid Huckabee supporter.)

I wanted to hit Reply To All and respond "How could any sane American listen to a man whose initials are BS? Isn't there enough BS on the internet anyway?". I refrained, though.

I don't even know what John McCain's middle name is. Or Clinton's. Or Huckabee, Romney, Edwards...

Good point, Remedios! When was a middle name ever an issue in previous campaigns? It's not like his name is John Smith and that we need the middle name to remind us who we are talking about. As long as they are honest slips, Osama/Obama. But using Hussein and putting Osama's picture on a Obama story(or vice versa); I think that is completely unnecessary, and poor journalism.

You can say what you like about the liberal media; but the kind of fear mongering you see on FOX news are straight out of a George Orwell novel. Is far more frightening than any foreign threats if you ask me. And, yes, I take threats seriously, but pissing your pants ain't gonna help you either. We tried that approach for seven years and it didn't work out so well.

McCain and Bush are aligned on foreign policies, and that is what frightens me. But come November we will see who wins the vote, and I doubt it will be McCain.

Hilary Diane , JOhn Reid, Willard MItt and MIcheal Dale yes i know they middlen names

It could.

i don't think it would be so bad if there weren't things like the "snopes.com" e-mail floating around that says obama is muslim, took oath to office using the koran, etc. the e-mail says it was checked on snopes.com and you can 'check for yourself.' of course, if you check for yourself, snopes says it's a big fat lie, but no one actually checks, they just keep passing the lies along. i've received it twice, and i really think the people who sent it believed it!!

that may seem like a pointless rant, but i think it just goes to show that people will believe anything they read (and pass it off as fact) without hesitation. which is why these kinds of mistakes on tv are critical.

I guess it's a good thing Senator Joseph Mengele (R-Idaho) isn't running for President or that would be really awful.

raciccarone; really, there's an elected official with that name?! Crazy!

It seems kind of ridiculous that the news orgs. can't get the right image to match the story. Unless someone is having a bit of a laugh at the 'mistake.'

This reminds me of something Jon Stewart said on the Daily Show:
"His first name rhymes with Iraq. His last name rhymes with Osama. And his middle name rhymes with...no...it IS Hussein!"

Either way, I wouldn't think this would be as embarrassing for Barack as if would be for the news stations that screwed up.

I hope not, but you never know with some Americans.

Here, here, ZAHARA. I totally agree with your first comment.

I heard someone say a few weeks ago that they weren't going to vote for him because he's a Muslim, so obviously some people still think that. If these are honest mistakes, then oh, well, but if they're on purpose, shame on them.

Unfortunately, we already know from some threads on this very blog that there are still people who already believe that, based on his background (despite his being a Christian anyway), he could really be a terrorist or somehow a danger to the country that a person without his background wouldn't be. People can be very suggestible when they haven't a solid base of knowledge to work from, and it's exactly this kind of thing that will promote a completely wrong and damaging impression of a perfectly electable and trustworthy candidate.

Jude C - I'm going to guess that you're referring to me.

I don't think Obama is a terrorist. The fact is that this man has the Islamic religion in his background. He has relatives that are Muslim. We are at war with a Muslim enemy. Will his background and the fact that he does have Muslim relatives make him more sympathetic to the Muslims we're fighting? Will those facts influence his decisions if he's elected? I don't know, but I'm not taking the chance that they might.

Trixie6--actually I didn't even have you in mind at all!

My only real point here is that I don't think we should automatically distrust anyone who has anything Muslim in their background, even as a statesman or President. Obama's record speaks for itself. But anyway--I don't think this is something we'll ever agree on and I understand where you're coming from.

However, this does remind me of jokes from some Muslim comics I've seen, talking about how the American perception of Islam is based on the "crazy Arabs with hooks" that are all they have to go on from the media, and how that would be like the Muslim world only having KKK Grand Dragons to go on as representatives of the U.S.

Thanks for keeping this thread civil and friendly, lately feelings run so high on CitizenSugar that that's not always the case!

Jude C - I do see your point. I so know what you mean about things not being civil. I don't know - I just don't see a point in being antagonistic. I just try to be open minded and respect other people's opinions. I know it's kind of corny, but my Dad used to say 'knowledge is power' and I've found that I can learn from listening to other people even if their views are different from mine. (Amazing, huh?)

I can't believe this is even an issue!!! Are people so, so stupid and brain-dead that they hear WORDS that rhyme and think that that makes them the same THINGS? Tell me this is not possible.

I'm not talking about people who accidentally slip up and say Osama instead of Obama (although, c'mon. . .), but people who are like, "His name sounds like Osama?? Well then he must be a terrorist, too!"

My name is Chloe, which rhymes with Joey. Does that mean that I'm an Italian American guy who likes to pick up chicks just because that's most famous 'Joey' most of us know?? I mean SERIOUSLY now, people! A 2 year old has been critical reasoning skills than that.

Nice one, City Girl!

Somehow, somewhere..I believe that this statement:

"...but my Dad used to say 'knowledge is power'..."

COMPLETELY CONTRADICTS THIS ONE:

"The fact is that this man has the Islamic religion in his background. He has relatives that are Muslim. We are at war with a Muslim enemy. Will his background and the fact that he does have Muslim relatives make him more sympathetic to the Muslims we're fighting? Will those facts influence his decisions if he's elected? I don't know, but I'm not taking the chance that they might."

So yeah, this 'knowledge' you speak of....why hasn't it TRULY allowed you to be more open-minded about Obama and his non-existent affiliation with Islam?

"My only real point here is that I don't think we should automatically distrust anyone who has anything Muslim in their background, even as a statesman or President. Obama's record speaks for itself. But anyway--I don't think this is something we'll ever agree on Smiling and I understand where you're coming from.

However, this does remind me of jokes from some Muslim comics I've seen, talking about how the American perception of Islam is based on the "crazy Arabs with hooks" that are all they have to go on from the media, and how that would be like the Muslim world only having KKK Grand Dragons to go on as representatives of the U.S."

It's close-minded perception that allows many Americans to believe EVERYTHING the media portrays to us. ALL Muslims are evil, hate Americans and are terrorists or at least agrees with terrorist acts against the U.S. There's no possibility whatsoever that some of them can be civil people who do not believe in killing others just because those people's(Christian) religious beliefs differ from theirs(Islam).

Yeah, isn't it kind of like saying that anyone with anything Muslim or Arabic in their background is automatically not to be trusted with any kind of national security or issue of importance?

I vaguely remember reading someone saying that even Obama's (or any other person with a Muslim background's) record is meaningless, since this person believes that anything a Muslim does might just be a lie to cement his/her covert position in the U.S. government. So it's like saying that no matter what you do, no matter how you vote, for how many years of your life, just having any kind of Muslim background automatically makes you untrustworthy and--dare I say it--inherently un-American.

Which, among other things, would disqualify most of our counterterrorism Arabic interpreters from their jobs.

I find this infuriatingly ignorant and sad. I have had some good friends who have been Muslim--all the way Muslim, not just with some Muslim background like Obama--and they have been some of the nicest, most generous, most trustworthy friends I've had. Of course all Muslims are not evil; in fact, the majority of them are not evil. Just as all Americans are not Confederate-flag-waving bigots with secret fantasies of lynch mobs and a return to slavery.

Well said, Jude. I couldn't agree more. I bet the McCain campaign is milking these falsities because I'm sure it's most of their supporters who believe this swill in the first place. Some people can be so close-minded, it's unbelievable. It's really a dangerous thing especially when they try to make attacks on the basis of their distorted beliefs, which has greatly impaired their judgment.

Implying that a group of people is inherently un-American based on their religious beliefs, is actually one of the most un-American things I think people could do.

It's like JFK checking all of his decisions with the Pope. That really was an issue in a lot of people's minds.

Wow, Indielove. Thanks for that personal attack.

You have your opinion on Obama and I have mine. Was jumping on me personally really necessary?

Very well said Jude C and Indielove! I totally agree with you both!