President Obama led into the first episode of the new reboot of “Cosmos” with a message encouraging the American people to open their eyes and imaginations to the possibilities of the unknown.
It was a nice trade: Obama got some uninterrupted face time with a national TV audience and an opportunity to boost his administration’s emphasis on science and math; Neil deGrasse Tyson and Seth MacFarlane, meanwhile, netted an endorsement for their reboot of the beloved Carl Sagan series that is way more important than anything a TV critic can offer.
Also read: Watch: Fox’s Live ‘Cosmos’ Q&A With Neil DeGrasse Tyson and Seth MacFarlane (Video)
This was actually a pretty natural fit; during the 2012 election, Obama repeatedly emphasized his commitment to expanding math and science education, and announced a new program that would fund a growing corps of elite math and science teachers.
And, of course, Obama has palled around with Tyson, a famed astronomer and “Gravity” spoiler, before.