HEY, PALIN FANS, I THOUGHT IT WAS OBAMA WHO WAS OVEREXPOSED ON TV
(updated)

It's a common right-wing (and mainstream media) complaint that President Obama is on TV too much -- but can the same now be said about Sarah Palin?

Time was, a Palin appearance on TV was expected to give any show a ratings boost -- for instance Palin's appearance on Oprah Winfrey's show last November gave Oprah her highest rating in two years.

But Jay Leno? Well, the headline is that Palin helped Leno beat David Letterman last night, but check out the numbers:

Tuesday: Leno (with Palin) 5.8 million viewers, Letterman 3.7 million viewers.

Monday: Leno (without Palin) 6.6 million viewers, Letterman 3.8 million viewers.

Yeah, Monday was Leno's first night back in prime time, so it's not surprising that the numbers were high -- but we're talking Sarah Palin, folks. She used to be TV gold. She used to increase any show's viewership -- a lot.

Could it be we just see her way too much on Fox these days? As an audience draw, is she now a mere mortal?

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UPDATE, WEDNESDAY: Given the above, I'm thrilled that Sarah Palin is shopping around an Alaska-based reality series and is pitching it to NBC, CBS, and Fox rather than cable channels. I want her on network television. I want her to be utterly unavoidable on TV. The sooner America has had all the Palin it can stand, the sooner the starbursts are going to fade for at least some Palinites and Palinettes, and the sooner she'll go the way of Andrew Dice Clay, Morton Downey Jr., and other insult comics who eventually foundered on TV.

As for her forthcoming book, I think William (Book of Virtues) Bennett should sue for plagiarism:

Publisher HarperCollins announced Wednesday that the former Alaska governor and Republican vice presidential candidate is working on a "celebration of American virtues and strengths." ...

Her new work will "include selections from classic and contemporary readings that have inspired her, as well as portraits of some of the extraordinary men and women she admires and who embody her love of country, faith, and family," the publisher's statement reads.

So let's say: She wants to be Barack Obama (as president and repeat bestselling author), she wants to be Bill Bennett, she wants to be Snooki, and she wants to be a late-night comic. (Oh, and a media critic.) She's beginning to remind me of hecklers I used to see back when I went to comedy clubs. It clearly offended them that other people were making audiences laugh -- making their friends (and dates) laugh -- doing something that they clearly felt they could do (it's just talking, right?). Palin doesn't believe there's anything she can't do, and she can't stand watching other people get attention that she thinks she could be getting. So she wants the job of everyone who gets attention when she doesn't.