They aren’t counting on Obama to win. They are counting on the Republican to lose. When the candidate is decided, the media will go on a full out blitz to destroy him.
You hit the nail on the head here. The incessant vicous attacks that Palin experienced will pale in comparison to the tsunami of biased reporting that will swamp the Republican nominee. And the more conservative the nominee, the more violent the attacks.. If the nominee is a liberal Repuclican like Romnie they’ll try to paint him as a left wing extremeist, attack his religion(i.e. point out all the kooky stuff Mormons believe and ask him if he believes it), try to drive a wedge between him and Christians... throw anything at him they think will stick.
All that said, I still think the republican nominee has a decent chance.