News Flash! Charlie Crist Ducks TV Camera

Passing up a chance at free media -- or perhaps exercising damage control -- Charlie Crist will be a no-show this Sunday on MSNBC's "Meet the Press" program.

Crist's nominal excuse is that he has prior campaign engagements. Really? There are no remote hookups from the hustings? The guv can't spare the time? What gives?

This strategy is hard to figure ... unless you consider the concern that Crist may not fare well in the three-way debates with Kendrick Meek and Marco Rubio. As the "independent," Crist could get it from both sides, pundits say.

Still, it's not like Crist to shy away from the limelight. It's glaringly out of character. While Crist has agreed to one debate -- Oct. 24 in his hometown of St. Petersburg -- Rubio and Meek have agreed to participate in four others.