Is Couric Dissing Palin in Old Tape?

Right-leaning websites such as Conservatives4Palin are jumping on a 2008 video they say shows Katie Couric "mocking" Sarah Palin. In the footage, taken the day Palin was picked to be the VP candidate, Couric struggles off air with the names of the candidate's kids. "Where the hell do they get these names," she asks after reading off "Trig" and "Track." The site also accuses Couric of being generally dismissive of Palin throughout her initial coverage, with a focus on "moose burgers and beauty pageants." Some other reactions:

• "The comments themselves aren’t an indictment," but the video does allow us to watch the seeds of bias get planted in Couric’s mind, "to such an extent that she felt it necessary to share them with her co-workers," writes Ed Morrissey for Hot Air. "The McCain campaign bet badly on having Palin give her first major interview to CBS News."
• The criticism is off base, writes Colby Hall at Mediaite. Keep in mind that Palin was virtually unknown at the time, "and regardless of where one finds his or herself on the political spectrum, Palin’s kids DO have unique names." And any other "bullet points" about Palin's life highlighted by CBS undoubtedly came from the McCain campaign. "To call this proof of her mocking Palin just falls way short of its mark."
• Still, it will be interesting to see if Palin seizes on the tape, notes Ben Smith at Politico. Given her "fixation" on the media in general and Couric in particular, "it would seem quite tempting."

(More Katie Couric stories.)