#Television & radio RSS feed Television RSS feed Media RSS feed Television industry RSS feed Culture RSS feed TV matters RSS feed TV and radio blog RSS feed Turn autoplay off Turn autoplay on Please activate cookies in order to turn autoplay off * Jump to content [s] * Jump to comments [c] * Jump to site navigation [0] * Jump to search [4] * Terms and conditions [8] Edition: UK * US Sign in Mobile About us * About us * Contact us * Press office * Guardian Print Centre * Guardian readers' editor * Observer readers' editor * Terms of service * Privacy policy * Advertising guide * Digital archive * Digital edition * Guardian Weekly * Buy Guardian and Observer photos * Subscribe Today's paper * The Guardian * Comment and debate * Editorials, letters and corrections * Obituaries * Other lives * Sport * Review * Travel * Family * Money * Work * Weekend * The Guide * Subscribe Subscribe * Subscribe to the Guardian * iPhone app * iPad edition * Kindle * Extra * Guardian Weekly * Digital edition * All our services The Guardian home ____________________ [Television & radio] Search * News * Sport * Comment * Culture * Business * Money * Life & style * Travel * Environment * TV * Data * Video * Mobile * Offers * Jobs * Culture * Television & radio * Television Series: TV matters Previous | Next | Index Badge TV & Radio Blog TV matters: The presidential dreams of liberal TV Way before a black or female president seemed possible, shows and films like 24 and Commander in Chief were already daring to dream * + Tweet this + IFRAME: http://www.facebook.com/plugins/like.php?app_id=17841205555826 7&href=http://www.guardian.co.uk/culture/tvandradioblog/2008/j ul/03/tvmattersbonekickers&send=false&layout=button_count&widt h=140&show_faces=false&action=recommend&colorscheme=light&font =arial&height=21 + [icon_reddit.gif] reddit this * Comments (…) * Mark Lawson * The Guardian, Thursday 3 July 2008 * Article history About this article Close TV matters: The presidential dreams of liberal TV This article appeared on p35 of the G2 section of the Guardian on Thursday 3 July 2008. It was published on guardian.co.uk at 01.34 BST on Thursday 3 July 2008. It was last modified at 18.01 BST on Thursday 16 October 2008. It was first published at 09.30 BST on Thursday 3 July 2008. Bonekickers cast shot Digging for victory ... The cast of Bonekickers. Photograph: BBC As Barack Obama aims to make a large piece of political history, he has already achieved a little footnote in the chronicles of television: as the presidential candidate most dramatised by television even before the official election race begins. Bonekickers (BBC1), the new yarn about archaeologists, from the team behind Life On Mars, features a black character who is a candidate for the White House. As this storyline would need to have been written and filmed before the Illinois politician who inspired it secured the Democratic nomination, the show's creators, Matthew Graham and Ashley Pharaoh, must have been even more horrified than the Obama camp by Hillary Clinton's intermittent returns to contention. But Obama had inspired a peak-time hero even before becoming a presidential candidate. Writers on The West Wing have admitted that Matt Santos, the Hispanic Congressman who bids for Martin Sheen's seat in seasons six and seven, was based on a then obscure mixed-race representative in Chicago. Watched now, those episodes make spooky viewing, as Santos even uses phrases - such as "the audacity of hope" - that have become famous on the campaign trail. Indeed, as Santos's Republican rival, Arnold Vinick, is clearly indebted to the biography of John McCain, the sixth set of West Wings offers a sort of simulation of this autumn's election. If you want to go back even further, it can be argued that American TV dreamed of Obama even before he entered politics: the series 24 had a black president years before it was a political possibility. But, then, Mrs Clinton, even if she never makes it to the White House as a politician, has already served there twice in fiction, inspiring the characters played by Joan Allen in The Contender and Geena Davis in Commander in Chief. These prophetic plot-lines resulted from liberal wishing, but such examples of what might be called science-faction underline the unusual dramatic value of this election year. * Print this Printable version * Send to a friend * Share * Clip * Contact us * larger | smaller Email Close Recipient's email address ____________________ Your first name ____________________ Your surname ____________________ Add a note (optional) _________________________ _________________________ _________________________ _________________________ _________________________ Send Your IP address will be logged Share Close Short link for this page: http://gu.com/p/2vfmn * StumbleUpon * reddit * Tumblr * Digg * LinkedIn * Google Bookmarks * del.icio.us * livejournal * Facebook * Twitter Contact us Close * Report errors or inaccuracies: reader@guardian.co.uk * Letters for publication should be sent to: letters@guardian.co.uk * If you need help using the site: userhelp@guardian.co.uk * Call the main Guardian and Observer switchboard: +44 (0)20 3353 2000 * + Advertising guide + License/buy our content Television & radio * Television Media * Television industry Culture Series * TV matters More from TV and radio blog on Television & radio * Television Media * Television industry Series * TV matters Related * 6 Apr 2011 Big Brother moves next door to Channel 5 * 12 May 2003 Heroes? Not us * 10 Jan 2005 Pick of the day * 9 Mar 2009 What are your fantasy channels? * Print this Printable version * Send to a friend * Share * Clip * Contact us * Article history Email Close Recipient's email address ____________________ Your first name ____________________ Your surname ____________________ Add a note (optional) _________________________ _________________________ _________________________ _________________________ _________________________ Send Your IP address will be logged Share Close Short link for this page: http://gu.com/p/2vfmn * StumbleUpon * reddit * Tumblr * Digg * LinkedIn * Google Bookmarks * del.icio.us * livejournal * Facebook * Twitter Contact us Close * Report errors or inaccuracies: reader@guardian.co.uk * Letters for publication should be sent to: letters@guardian.co.uk * If you need help using the site: userhelp@guardian.co.uk * Call the main Guardian and Observer switchboard: +44 (0)20 3353 2000 * + Advertising guide + License/buy our content About this article Close TV matters: The presidential dreams of liberal TV This article appeared on p35 of the G2 section of the Guardian on Thursday 3 July 2008. It was published on guardian.co.uk at 01.34 BST on Thursday 3 July 2008. It was last modified at 18.01 BST on Thursday 16 October 2008. It was first published at 09.30 BST on Thursday 3 July 2008. Comments 2 comments, displaying oldest first Sort comments by [Oldest] Submit * This symbol indicates that that person is The Guardian's staff Staff * This symbol indicates that that person is a contributor Contributor * joedoone 3 July 2008 10:12AM OBE Knickers Icke Bonkers * + Recommend (0) + Responses (0) + Report + Clip + | Link * pandemoniana 3 July 2008 12:45PM Bonekickers just looks dire. After the dismal Ashes to Ashes, I'm inclined to think that Graham/Pharoah might be the current one-hit wonders of TV * + Recommend (0) + Responses (0) + Report + Clip + | Link Comments on this page are now closed. On TV & radio * Most viewed * Zeitgeist * Latest Last 24 hours 1. [Angus-Deayton-003.jpg] 1. Angus Deayton: 'I plead guilty to having an affair. But it's no one else's business' 2. 2. 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