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Americans Mixed on DNC Socially-distanced Political Theater

Associated Press

   BALLWIN, MO. - Nick Zingarelli relished Michelle Obama's speech at the
   Democratic National Convention this week, especially when the former
   first lady used President Donald Trump's own words -- "It is what it
   is" -- to sum up Democrats' disappointment in his presidency.
   But the moment on the first night of the first virtual convention was
   bittersweet for Zingarelli. A line that good deserved a thunderous
   applause from a crowded convention hall, he thought.
   "Not having that response -- yeah, there was something that was taken
   away from that," said Zingarelli, a 41-year-old lawyer from suburban
   St. Louis. "But it's the best that we can do in this environment."
   In other words, it is what it is.
   Many Americans who have tuned in to Democrats' experiment in socially
   distanced political theater have come away with similar reactions. They
   believe that a traditional nominating convention -- a boisterous and
   quirky affair staged for a packed audience of hyped-up political
   activists -- had to be sacrificed for safety and public health. But its
   replacement -- a mashup of homemade videos, slickly produced montages
   and speeches with no applause -- takes some getting used to.

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