Nation Awaits Palin ABC Appearance

Charles Gibson's interviews with Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin will form the basis of a special prime-time edition of "20/20" Friday, ABC said Wednesday.

Gibson is traveling to Fairbanks and Wasilla, Alaska, for the first TV interviews with Palin since she was selected as John McCain's running mate. The first excerpts of the talks will be shown on "World News" Thursday.

Gibson is having three separate interviews with Palin, ABC said. Parts of the interviews will be spread around other ABC news programs, including "Nightline" and "Good Morning America."

The prime-time special, at 10 p.m. EDT, will also include a bio of Palin by ABC's Kate Snow and a round-table discussion on the presidential race moderated by George Stephanopoulos.

The Alaska Republican has proven to be a ratings-grabber during her short time on the national political scene. Her speech to the GOP national convention last week was seen by more than 40 million people, according to Nielsen Media Research.

A Fox News Channel documentary, "Governor Palin: An American Woman" last Saturday was the highest-rated prime-time documentary in the network's history, with 2.7 million viewers.

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ABC Debate Moderators: Less Than Stellar

Critics are panning ABC News for its performance at the Democratic presidential debate Wednesday night. Even moderator Charlie Gibson recognized that it wasn’t going well.

Many media critics gave ABC poor reviews, arguing that the debate focused not on policy, but on gaffes by both candidates that have made the news in the last few weeks.

The debate was the last to be held before Pennsylvania voters go to the polls on Tuesday to determine who will get the majority of the 158 delegates from that state.

Among the worst offenses to media analysts and viewers was the number of commercial breaks taken, including one just minutes into the two-hour telecast, immediately after Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama made their opening statements.

Gibson later earned jeers for taking a break shortly before the end of the program. Boos could be heard, and Gibson threw up his hands in defeat.

“Oh,” he said with a nervous laugh to co-moderator George Stephanopoulos. “The crowd is turning on me, the crowd is turning on me.”

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