Spears and Hilton Raise McCain Coverage Even With Obama
A spasm of introspection by the media, amid a wave of accusations that they were being unfair to the GOP standard bearer combined with a controversial ad to generate equal coverage of the two candidates.
Obama’s Trip Consumes Coverage
While many media outlets credited Obama with a stylistically successful and largely gaffe-less trip, some questioned whether it actually benefited the candidate.
War Takes Center Stage as Obama (and Media) Move Overseas
In a week that began with speeches on foreign policy by both candidates and ended with Barack Obama traveling to the Middle East, The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, in various dimensions, retook center stage in the campaign for the presidency.
The Changing Newsroom: Gains and Losses in Today’s Papers
It has fewer pages than three years ago, the paper stock is thinner, and the stories are shorter. There is less foreign and national news, less space devoted to science, the arts, features and a range of specialized subjects. These are just some of the changes documented in a new report by the Project for Excellence in Journalism that examines the resources in American newsrooms at a critical time.
Gaffe Coverage: Jackson Tops Gramm
Statements by two non-candidates steered the campaign narrative last week, but Jesse Jackson’s derogatory remarks about Obama drew more media attention than did Phil Gramm’s remarks about whiny America.
The Faith Factor in the Media’s Primary Campaign Coverage
Despite attention to Obama’s former pastor, questions about McCain’s relationship with the conservative religious base, interest in Romney’s Mormon faith and Baptist preacher Huckabee’s strong showing, only 2% of campaign stories directly focused on religion; still that was more than the attention devoted to race and gender combined.
Media Heat Wave
A week of negative election storylines was led by the shake-up in the McCain campaign, Gen. Wesley Clark’s comments and questions of patriotism. Thanks in part to his staffing reshuffle, McCain was competitive with Obama in coverage for the first time since Obama clinched his nomination.
Summer Rerun: Media Returns to Coverage of Divided Democrats
While differences between Barack Obama and John McCain over energy policy played a major role, most of the campaign narrative focused on Democrats’ efforts to reunite the party.
The Spouse and the President Get Their Media Close-ups
A key narrative in last week’s campaign focused not on Barack Obama and John McCain themselves, but on two people whose public roles reflect crucial challenges facing the candidates–Michelle Obama and George Bush.
Coverage Turns To Issues
In a relatively light week of campaign coverage, attention focused on policy differences. Still, a fair amount of attention was also paid to some controversies and gaffes.
